
HOWARD R. GARIS 























4 



l ^ 







Uncle Wiggily 

ITRADE MARK REGISTERED! 

AND 

BABY BUNTY 


by 

HOWARD R. GARIS 

Author of “UNCLE WIGGILY BEDTIME STORIES**, 
“UNCLE WIGGILY’S PICTURE BOOK’*, 
“UNCLE WIGGILY’S STORY BOOK”, Etc. 


Illustrated by 

LOUIS WISA 



A. L. BURT COMPANY 


c ' zo = 


PUBLISHERS 


NEW YORK 


UNCLE WIGGILY BOOKS 

(TRADE MARK REGISTERED) 

by '-X 

HOWARD R. GARIS c:i {23 

BEDTIME STORIES 7. 

UNCLE WIGGILY and CHARLIE and ARABELLA CHICK 

UNCLE WIGGILY AND THE RINGTAILS 

UNCLE WIGGILY ON SUGAR ISLAND 

UNCLE WIGGILY AT THE SEASHORE 

UNCLE WIGGILY AND BABY BUNTY 

UNCLE WIGGILY IN THE COUNTRY 

UNCLE WIGGILY’S PUZZLE BOOK 

UNCLE WIGGILY IN THE WOODS 

UNCLE WIGGILY’S ADVENTURES 

UNCLE WIGGILY’S AUTOMOBILE 

UNCLE WIGGILY ON THE FARM 

UNCLE WIGGILY’S BUNGALOW 

UNCLE WIGGILY’S FORTUNE 

UNCLE WIGGILY’S TRAVELS 

UNCLE WIGGILY’S AIRSHIP 


Larger Uncle Wiggily Volumes 


UNCLE WIGGILY^S PICTURE BOOK 

33 full colored illustrations and 
32 in blank and white 

UNCLE WIGGILY’S STORY BOOK 

z6 full colored illustrations and 
2 gin black and white 


Copyright igao by 

R. F. FENNO &. COMPANY 

UNCLE WIGGILY AND BABY BUNTY 

c < 

‘ ^ Printed in the United States of America 


To replace lost copy 
OCT - 9 1934 



STORY I 


UNCLE WIGGILY AND BABY BUNTY 

‘‘Ouch! Oh, dear! My! My!” 

That was what Nurse Jane Fuzzy W^uzzy 
heard one day in the hollow stump bungalow* 
She was just getting breakfast for Uncle 
Wiggily Longears, the bunny gentleman. 

“My goodness me sakes alive and a basket 
of potato chips!” cried Nurse Jane, accidentally 
dropping a stewed carrot into the turnip mar- 
malade. “I hope the Skeezicks, or the Pipsis- 
ewah or the Skuddlemagoon hasn’t caught Mr. 
Longears !” 

She looked in the dining room. The uncle 
bunny had just come downstairs to his breakfast. 

“Ouch! Oh, me! Oh, my!” groaned Uncle 
Wiggily as he sat down in his chair, which was 
gnawed out of a grape-vine root. 

“Why, no one is biting him,” said Nurse 
Jane, as she looked all around. “Whatever in 
the world is the matter, Wiggy?” she asked, 
bringing in his breakfast turnip. 

“Oh, I’m getting old, I guess,” he answered. 
“My joints are stiff, and it isn’t all rheumatism, 
either. I can’t move around as spry as I’d 

9 


To Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


like to. Every time I bend over, or stoop, or 
try to hurry I get aches and pains and ” 

“Oh, nonsense!” laughed Nurse Jane. “You 
only imagine it. You’re as young as ever I 
What you need is some one lively around the 
house. Some one to chase you, to tag you and 
make you spry. I can’t do it, because I have 
the housework to look after. But if you could 
get some bright, frisky, lively little chap — ^why, 
you’d be a different rabbit.” 

“I s’pose I would,” said Uncle Wiggily. 
“Do you mean to get Johnnie or Billie Bushy- 
tail, one of the squirrel boys? They’re lively 
enough.” 

“Yes, they’re lively enough,” said Nurse 
Jane,, “but they have to frisk around their own 
home nest. You want some one to stay here 
with you a long time.” 

“All right,” said Uncle Wiggily, sad like and 
not very hopeful. “After breakfast I’ll go to 
the five and six cent store and see if I can get 
a lively little chap to cheer me up.” 

“You won’t find any at the five and six, nor 
even at the ten and eleven cent store,” said 
Nurse Jane. “True, the little mousie girl 
clerks are lively enough, but they have to work. 
You need a — ^well, a sort of companion. I’m 
getting too old for you.” 

“Nonsense!” scoffed Uncle Wiggily. 


JJncIe Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


11 


But, as he hopped over the fields and through 
the woods after breakfast the more he thought 
of what Nurse Jane had said the more he knew 
she was right. 

“I need some one lively to make me jump 
around,” thought the bunny. “If only I could 
get a ” 

Just then he heard a little voice calling: 

“Let me out! Let me out.” 

“Ha! Where does that voice come from?” 
asked the bunny. “Where are you, whoever 
you are?” 

“In this hollow stump, right behind you!” 
answered the voice. “Oh, I hate being cooped 
up here! I want to get out and jump around 
and chase my shadow and jump over moom 
beams and all things like that.” 

“Are you — are you a fairy?” asked Uncle 
Wiggily sort of hopeful like. “If I help you 
out of the hollow stump, could you make me 
feel younger and more lively?” 

“Of course I could; but I’m not a fairy,” was 
the answer, given with a jolly laugh. 

“You must be a fairy or else you couldn’t 
take away my old-age aches and pains,” said 
the bunny. “Well, as long as you aren’t the 
skillery-scalery alligator, or the Pipsisewah, I’ll 
let you out. But how did you get in?” 

“Let me out and I’ll tell you,” said the voice. 


12 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


The hollow stump was partly filled with old 
dried leaves, broken sticks and bits of bayk. 
Uncle Wiggily scraped all this away with his 
paws, and out popped the dearest little girl 
rabbit you ever saw. 

“Oh, who are you?” asked Uncle Wiggily in 
surprise. 

“I am Baby Bunty,” was the answer. “I 
was going through the woods with my papa and 
mamma a while ago, but a bad fox caught them, 
and I was left all alone. So I hid in the hollow 
stump, the birds piled leaves and bits of bark 
over me to cover me, but when it rained it wa::: 
packed down so hard that I couldn’t get out. 
So I had to cry for help.” 

“Well, I’m glad I helped you,” said the 
bunny. “But how are you going to make me 
feel young again ” 

“Tag! You’re it!” suddenly cried Baby 
Bunty, tapping Uncle Wiggily with her paw. 
“Now you have to chase me!” and away she 
hopped through the woods. 

“My goodness! If she goes along like that, 
all alone, the fox will catch her!” said Uncle 
Wiggily. “I’ll have to run after her! But 
my aches — my pains — oh dear!” 

Away hopped the rabbit gentleman, after 
Baby Bunty. She ran fast and so did Uncle 
Wiggily, and when they reached his hollow 


Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 13 


stump bungalow he was so warm and excited 
and so anxious about Baby Bunty — ^why, he 
wasn’t lame or stiff a bit! Can you imagine? 

“I told you so!” laughed 'Nurse Jane, when 
she saw the baby rabbit, which Mr. Longears 
said he would keep in his bungalow. “Now 
that you have some one yoimg aroimd you’ll get 
younger yourself.” 

And Mr. Longears did. And if the top of 
the house doesn’t go down cellar to see why the 
laundry tubs can’t wash the coal white, I’ll tell 
you next about Uncle Wiggily and Bunty’s 
skates. 


STORY II 


UNCLE WIGGILY AND BUNTY’s SKATES 

Uncle Wiggily Longears, the bunny rabbit 
gentleman, was asleep in his hollow stump bung- 
alow one morning, when he heard, as if in a 
dream. Nurse Jane Fuzzy ring the breakfast 
bell. 

“Oh! Um! Ah! I don’t hardly believe I’ll 
get up this morning!” said Uncle Wiggily, sort 
of stretchy like. “You may keep breakfast for 
me. Nurse Jane.” 

“Oh, Uncle Wiggily! You must get up! 
You must get up! You must get up! Oh, 
Uncle Wiggily, you must get up! You must 
get up today! Right away!” sang a jolly little 
voice. 

Uncle Wiggily gave a sudden start. All his 
aches and pains seemed to go away at once, and 
he felt as spry as a new grasshopper. 

“Hello! Who’s down there?” he called from 
the top of the stairs, for the voice seemed to 
come from the dining room, down below. “Who 
wants me to get up?” 

“It’s Baby Bunty!” said Nurse Jane. “Have 
you forgotten that you brought her home from 

14 


Uncle Wiggily and Bunty’s Skates 15 


a hollow stump yesterday, and that she’s going 
to live here?” 

‘‘Oh, I did forget!” cried Uncle Wiggily. 
“Is she still here?” 

“Well, you’d better come down here and look 
after her while I get breakfast!” said Nurse 
Jane. “I never saw such a lively little rabbit 
before! She nearly jumped over the milk bottle 
while I had my back turned!” 

Uncle Wiggily smiled until his pink nose 
twinkled on both sides at once. 

“So Baby Bunty is lively, is she?” said the 
bunny gentleman. “Well, that’s just what I 
need to keep me from getting old and stiff.” 

“Hurry, Uncle Wiggily! Hurry!” called 
Baby Bunty. 

“What’s the hurry?” asked Mr. Longears, as 
he smoothed out his fur with a pine tree cone 
for a brush. 

“Why, this is the first of May!” went on the 
little rabbit girl, who was going to live with 
Uncle Wiggily. “It’s the first of May and 
we’re going out and gather flowers today, 
tra-la!” 

“Who’s going?” asked Uncle Wiggily, as he 
came downstairs to breakfast. 

“You and I are going to gather flowers. 
We’ll have fun, many joyful hours!” sang Baby 
Bunty, as she danced about the breakfast room 


16 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


like a sunbeam playing tag with a pussy cat. 

“Oh, oh! We’ll see about that!” said Uncle 
Wiggily. “Now you run out and play while 
I eat, and then we’ll see what happens. Did 
you have your breakfast?” 

“Oh, yes. Baby Bunty was up as soon as I 
was,” said Nurse Jane. 

Uncle Wiggily ate his breakfast slowly and 
carefully. He didn’t like to hurry except when 
the Pipsisewah was chasing him. And after he 
had eaten some carrot pancakes. Uncle Wiggily 
felt sort of lazy like and comfortable. 

“I’ll play a little trick on Baby Bunty,” he 
thought. “I don’t believe it will do my old 
bones good to go off in the damp woods so early 
in the morning to gather flowers. I’ll wait 
until the sun is warmer. I’ll just stay here and 
go to sleep. She’ll forget all about me.” 

So Uncle Wiggily curled up in the easy 
chair, thinking how good it felt to rest his tired 
bones and joints. But, all of a sudden, as he 
was sort of dozing off to sleep, he heard Nmse 
Jane cry: 

“Oh, Uncle Wiggily! Come here! Come 
quickly ! There goes Baby Bunty off on her 
skates.” 

“Baby Bunty? Going off on her skates! 
Why, she hasn’t any skates!” cried the rabbit 
gentleman, suddenly waking up! “She’s too 


Uncle Wiggily and Bimty’s Skates 17 


little to have roller skates, and it isn’t the time 
of year for ice skates. How you talk, Nurse 
Jane!” 

“Well, there she goes, anyhow!” said the 
muskrat lady. “She’s a lively little tyke, is 
Baby Bunty. She made herself a pair of roller 
skates out of some old round clothespins, and 
there she goes on them, skating down the wood- 
land path. You’d better run after her. Uncle 
Wiggily, or a bad fox may catch her!” 

“That’s so!” cried Uncle Wiggily. Then he 
forgot all about his stiff joints, and how he used 
to have rheumatism and all that. Away he 
hopped and ran and leaped and jumped after 
Baby Bunty. And away the little Bunty went 
on her clothespin roller skates. 

“Come on. Uncle Wiggily!” she cried to him. 
“See if you can catch me!” 

Well, Uncle Wiggily finally did, but it was 
hard work, and he was so out of breath when 
he finally ran and caught up to Baby Bunty 
that he could hardly twinkle his pink nose at all. 

“Isn’t this jolly!” laughed the little bunny 
girl tyk«. “Now we can get May flowers! I 
wanted you to be lively and come, and you did. 
You came right after me!** 

“Yes, but you led me quite a chase!” panted 
Uncle Wiggily. “However, I guess I feel 
better after it. I’m not stiff, now!” And he 


18 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


wasn’t a bit, and he and Baby Bunty gathered 
a fine bouquet of May blossoms. And if the 
molasses jug doesn’t get stuck in the alley when 
it’s trying to run through and tag the sugar 
cookie. I’ll tell you next about Uncle Wiggily 
and Bunty’s ride. 


STORY III 


UNCLE WIGGILY AND BUNTY’s RIDE 

Ou in front of the hollow stump bungalow 
sat Uncle Wiggily’s automobile. He had put 
on it a new turnip steering wheel, and he was 
thinking of going for a ride, when Nurse Jane 
Fuzzy Wuzzy came out on the front stoop and 
said: 

“Here’s the pepper caster, Mr. Longears.” 

“Pepper caster? What do I want of that 
when I’m going for a ride in my auto?” asked 
the bunny, in surprise. “I don’t need it!” 

“Why, yes, you do,” spoke Nurse J ane. 
“Don’t you remember? You always sprinkle 
pepper on the sausage tires of your auto, when 
you want to go fast. And you might want to 
go fast today.” 

“So I might,” said Uncle Wiggily, reflective 
like, and slow. “So I might. Thank you. 
Nurse Jane.” 

The bunny rabbit gentleman took the pepper 
caster from the muskrat lady, but still he did 
not get in his auto and take a ride. Instead he 
sat down on a bench in front of his bungalow, 

19 


20 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


and he let the sun shine through his whiskers 
and on his pink, twinkling nose. 

“I think I’ll sit here and take a rest,” spoke 
Uncle Wiggily. ‘‘I did have it in mind to go 
for a ride, but it is very nice here. It does my 
old rheumatic joints good to let the sun soak in. 
I’ll just be lazy and comfortable like today.” 

So he took some soft cushions out of the 
Sunday parlor part of his auto, made himself 
a little bed on the bench at the sunny side of his 
machine, and snuggled down. 

“Oh, what a funny looking rabbit you are!” 
cried a jolly little voice all of a sudden. “Come 
on and play with me. Uncle Wiggily!” 

“No, Baby Bunty! Not today!” answered 
Mr. Longears, not even bothering to open his 
eyes, he was so lazy like and self-contained. 
But even if he did not see her, he knew it was 
Baby Bunty speaking. She was the lively little 
rabbit girl he had found in a hollow stump, and 
had brought home to live with him. 

“Oh, come and play tag!” begged Bunty. 

“No! Nope! Nopey!” said Mr. Longears 
slowly. “I just want to sit and rest. My 
joints are too stiff to play tag!” 

Then everything grew quiet and peaceful, 
and Uncle Wiggily thought Baby Bunty had 
gone away so he could go to sleep. Baby Bunty 
had gone away, but in a very queer way. 


Uncle Wiggily and Bunty’s Ride 21 


All of a sudden Uncle Wiggily was awakened 
by hearing Nurse Jane call out: 

“Oh, Uncle Wiggily! Oh, Uncle Wiggily! 
Baby Bunty is having a ride.” 

“Is she?” asked the bunny slowly. That’s 
good! I hope she has a nice one!” 

“Oh, but listen!” cried the muskrat lady. 
“Baby Bunty jumped in your auto while you 
were asleep, and she sprinkled some pepper on 
the bologna sausage tires, and now she’s riding 
away! Run after her! Hop after her and 
catch her in the auto, or she may be hurt!” 

“Oh, my! Oh, my goodness!” cried Uncle 
Wiggily. He was wide awake now, and he 
forgot all about his stiff joints and wanting 
to rest. 

On through the woods he hopped. Faster 
and faster rode Baby Bunty in the runaway 
auto. Faster and faster hopped Uncle 
Wiggily. Quicker and quicker went Baby 
Bunty in the skippily auto. Quicker and 
quicker hopped Uncle Wiggily after her. 

“Stop! Stop!” cried the rabbit gentleman. 
“What are you trying to do?” 

“Oh! I wanted to have some fim, and make 
you chase me,” said Baby Bunty. “But I 
didn’t mean to go so fast, and now I can’t stop! 
Save me! Save me!” 

“I will if I can!” panted Uncle Wiggily. He 


22 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


wasn’t a bit lazy or sleepy now. Nor were his 
joints stiff! He was as lively as a cricket. 

Suddenly, just as Baby Bunty, not knowing 
much about automobiles, was going to run into 
a tree. Uncle Wiggily gave a big skip and a 
hop and caught up to her. In he jumped, shut 
off the gasolene, put on the brakes and saved 
Bunty. Then the little rabbit girl smiled 
sweetly and said: 

“Thank you. Uncle Wiggily. I thought I 
could make you come and have a ride with me.” 

“Well — dont — do — it — again!” said the rab- 
bit gentleman, all out of breath like. “You are 
getting too lively for me. Baby Bunty! Alto- 
gether too lively!” 

Still he liked her, and if the can opener doesn’t 
take the top off the powdered sugar basin and 
make the goldfish sneeze. I’ll tell you next about 
Uncle Wiggily and Bunty’s balloon. 


STORY IV 


UNCLE WIGGILY AND BUNTY’s BALLOON 

‘Ts she here?’’ whispered Uncle Wiggily to 
his muskrat lady housekeeper. Nurse Jane 
Fuzzy Wuzzy, as he hopped into his hollow 
stump bungalow one day. 

“Do you mean Mrs. Wibblewobble, the duck 
lady, who was just here calling on me?” asked 
Nurse Jane. “If you mean her, she has gone.” 

“No, I mean Baby Bunty. Is she here?” 
asked Uncle Wiggily, still whispering and look- 
ing all around the bimgalow, while he twinkled 
his pink nose expectant like. 

“Baby Bunty isn’t here,” said Nurse Jane. 
“I gave her a penny a while ago and she said 
she was going down to the one-cent store and 
buy a toy balloon.” 

“Ah! Then I can come in and have a rest,” 
said the rabbit gentleman. “Baby Bunty is 
good to keep an old rabbit man’s joints from 
getting stiff,” he said, as he stretched out in his 
easy chair, “but too much of it is quite enough. 
I’lf be glad of a little rest.” 

Baby Bunty, you Imow, was a cute little 
rabbit girl, whose father and mother had been 

23 


24 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


taken away by a fox. Uncle Wiggily found 
Baby Bunty in the woods in a hollow stump, 
and brought her home with him. 

“She’s so lively she’ll keep you from getting 
old and stiff,” said Nurse Jane. And Baby 
Bunty was very lively like and always doing 
something. 

“But now, since she has gone down the wood- 
land path to buy a toy balloon. I’ll sit here and 
rest,” said Uncle Wiggily. “I’ll take a nap 
until it’s time to eat dinner.” 

Uncle Wiggily stretched out in his easy chair. 
Soon his pink, twinkly nose was still and quiet. 
Mr. Longears was asleep. 

The bunny rabbit gentleman was just dream- 
ing he was chasing Baby Bunty through the 
woods in his automobile when, all of a sudden, 
in came running Billie Wagtail, the goat boy. 

“Oh, Uncle Wiggily! Uncle Wiggily!” 
bleated Billie. “You ought to see her!” 

“See whom?” asked Mr. Longears, waking up 
so suddenly that his nose twinkled twice as fast 
as it ought. “See whom?” 

“Baby Bunty!” answered the goal boy. 
“She’s away up in the air sailing over the tree- 
tops!” 

“She is?” cried the bunny gentleman. “Oh, 
dear! Some more of her tricks to keep me from 
getting old and stiff, I suppose. Did she take 



» 

r 



Uncle Wiggily and Bunty’s Balloon 25 


my airship out, as she ran away in my auto 
yesterday?” he asked Nurse Jane. 

“I think not,” answered the muskrat lady. 
“Your airship is still in the stable. And are you 
sure you saw her up above the trees, Billie?” 

“Oh, yes’m! And here comes Johnnie Bushy- 
tail, the squirrel! He saw her, too!” bleated the 
goat boy. 

“What’s the matter with Baby Bunty?” asked 
Uncle Wiggily of the chattery chap. 

“Oh, I don’t know,” answered Johnnie. “But 
she’s sailing around just like an airship — over 
the tops of the trees. Come out and see!” 

Out rushed Uncle Wiggily and Nurse Jane 
and Billie, the goat, and Johnnie, the squirrel. 
Surely enough, up above their heads, was Baby 
Bunty floating along like a cloud. 

“Oh, dear!” cried Uncle Wiggily; “that little 
rabbit girl is always doing something. But I 
must chase after her! I must get her down! 

“Quick, Nurse Jane. Bring out my flying 
suit of leather! Billie, you and Johnnie run my 
airship out of the barn! I’ll have to sail up in 
my airship and bring down Baby Bunty, but I 
don’t see how she got up there!” 

Uncle Wiggily was soon seated on the sofa 
cushions of his airship, which had toy circus bal- 
loons to raise it up and an electric fan that went 
whizzieizzie to speed it along. Soon he was 


26 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


sailing over the tree tops, up near where Baby 
Bunty was floating. 

‘‘Oh, dear! How did you ever get up here?’’ 
asked the rabbit gentleman. 

“Oh, I didn’t mean to! Really I didn’t!” 
said Baby Bunty, half crying. “But I’m glad 
you came after me, for it will keep you from 
getting old and stiff!” 

“Yes, I s’pose it will!” said Uncle Wiggily, 
as he sailed close to the little bunny girl and 
took her into the clothes basket part of his air- 
ship. “Ah! Ha! I see how you came to rise 
off the earth!” he said. “You blew your penny 
toy balloon up so big that it swelled and raised 
you up; didn’t you?” 

“Yes,” said Baby Bunty, “I did. But I 
didn’t mean to. I just blew and blew into my 
toy balloon and it got bigger and bigger, and 
then I couldn’t get the air out, and the balloon 
began to go up and I began to go up, and — 
well, I’m glad you came and got me!” she 
finished. 

“Yes,” said Uncle Wiggily, “I s’pose you are. 
But don’t do it again.” Then he let the air out 
of the toy balloon that Baby Bunty had blown 
too big for herself, and Mr. Longears took the 
little rabbit girl down to earth in his airship. 
And everybody said: 

“Isn’t Baby Bunty cute!” 


Uncle Wiggily and Bunty’s Balloon 27 


“Yes/’ said Mr. Longears, “she is. No one 
would get stiff joints with her around.” And 
if the box of talcum powder doesn’t blow smoke 
in the eyes of the potatoes and make them blink. 
I’ll tell you next about Uncle Wiggily and 
Bunty’s doll. 


STORY V 


UNCLE WIGGILY AND BUNTY’s DOLL 

‘‘Where is Bunty?” asked Uncle Wiggily 
Longears, the rabbit gentleman, one morning, 
as he came down to breakfast in his hollow 
stump bungalow. 

“Oh, Bunty has gone out to play, long ago!” 
said Nurse Jane Fuzzy Wuzzy. 

“Well, I’m glad of that,” spoke Uncle 
Wiggily, with a sigh, sort of restful like and 
ample. “It’s a good thing to have Bunty go 
out and play.” 

“Do you mean it’s good for her?” asked Nurse 
Jane, as she sliced some carrots for the bunny’s 
breakfast and poured maple sugar sauce over 
them. 

“It’s restful for Bunty and restful for me,” 
said Uncle Wiggily. “Do you know. Nurse 
Jane,” he went on, “since I found Baby Bunty, 
that cute little rabbit girl, in a hollow stump and 
brought her home to live with us, she certainly 
has kept me going. Yes, sir!” exclaimed Mr. 
Longears, explosive like and inflammatory, at 
the same time documentary, “she certainly has 
kept me busy!” 


3-8 


Uncle Wiggily and Bunty’s Doll 29 


“But it’s good for you,” said Miss Fuzzy 
Wuzzy, the muskrat lady housekeeper. “You 
haven’t looked so well in months. Baby Bunty, 
by being lively, and making you chase her every 
once in a while, keeps you from getting stiff.” 

“Well, yes, perhaps,” admitted the bunny 
rabbit. “But, at the same time I am glad she 
has gone out to play this morning. Now, after 
breakfast, I can sit and read my paper in peace 
and restfulness.” 

And, when he had finished eating his turnip 
turnovers, with lettuce frosting on. Uncle Wig- 
gily sat down in his easy chair in the sunshine, 
and began to look over the Cabbage Leaf 
Gazette, which is the newspaper of the animal 
people of Woodland, near the Orange Ice 
Mountains. 

But just as Uncle Wiggily was reading how 
Grandfather Goosey Gander had a cold in his 
bill and couldn’t quack very well. Nurse Jane 
suddenly cried: 

“Oh, Uncle Wiggily! Come here as quickly 
as you can. Hurry!” 

“What’s the matter now?” asked the rabbit 
gentleman, as he dropped his paper and gave 
three hops, a jump and part of a skip to the 
window, out of which Nurse Jane was looking. 
“What’s the matter?” 

“See! There goes Baby Bunty’s doll!” said 


30 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


the muskrat lady. “It’s skidding along over the 
ground as fast as the skillery-scalery alligator 
can crawl. Baby Bunty’s doll is running away, 
and she’ll feel so badly!” 

“Baby Bunty’s doll running away? Impos- 
sible!” cried Uncle Wiggily. “The doll isn’t 
alive — it can’t run away!” 

“But it is!” said Nurse Jane. “See it skiddle 
along!” 

And, as true as I’m telling you, there was 
Baby Bunty’s doll, moving along the woodland 
path, over the green moss, over the green grass, 
over the brown leaves in and out among the 
green ferns. The doll was sliding along the 
ground, but no one was dragging her or pulling 
her or pushing her — that is as far as Uncle 
Wiggily and Nurse Jane could see. 

“Did you ever? Can you imagine it!” cried 
the muskrat lady. 

“I can see it!” said the bunny, rubbing his 
eyes, and his pink, twinkling nose, to make sure 
he was awake. 

“I can see it!” said Uncle Wiggily. “I don’t 
have to imagine it. But what makes that doll 
go I don’t know. Some dolls can walk and talk, 
but I never saw one slide along all by herself 
before.” 

“Run after it, quickly!” cried Nurse Jane. 


Uncle Wiggily and Bunty’s Doll 31 


“Baby Bunty will feel very badly if her doll is 
lost! Run after it for her!” 

“I will,” said the rabbit gentleman. Not 
stopping to put on his tall, silk hat, and for- 
getting all about his red, white and blue-striped 
rheumatism crutch, out of his hollow stump 
bungalow rushed Uncle Wiggily. After the 
doll he hopped. 

But as fast as he hopped the doll skiddled 
along just as fast, always keeping ahead of Mr. 
Longears. 

“Oh, ho! I’ll get you yet!” cried the bunny. 
And he hopped faster and faster. But the doll 
skiddled along even more quickly. Uncle 
Wiggily was hopping as he had never hopped 
before. 

“What makes that doll skiddle along?” panted 
the bunny, all out of breath. “I cannot see any 
one pulling or pushing her. It can’t be a trick 
of the Pipsisewah or the Skuddlemagoon, for I 
can see neither of those bad chaps. What 
makes the doll move along? I must find out, 
but first I must get hold of it !” 

So the bunny hopped along faster and faster, 
and the doll skiddled along until, all of a sud- 
den, Baby Bunty ’s play-toy caught on a twisted 
tree root, was held fast, and Uncle Wiggily, 
making a big jump, grabbed it. Then he saw 


32 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


that a thin, black but very strong thread was 
tied around the doll. 

“Ha! Some one was pulling that doll along 
by this black string, and I couldn’t see it,” said 
the rabbit gentleman. “I wonder who did it?” 

“I did!” cried a jolly voice, and out from 
behind a bush jumped Baby Bunty. “I tied the 
long thread to my doll, and then I hopped ahead 
and pulled the doll after me!” said Baby Bunty. 
“I wanted you to hop along fast, and not get 
stiff. Uncle Wiggily, and you did! Ho! Ho! 
Ha! Ha!” 

Uncle Wiggily rubbed his pink nose. He 
shook his paw at Baby Bunty, but he couldn’t 
help laughing. 

“I’m not stiff now,” he said, “but I may be 
tomorrow.” 

“Oh, no you won’t!” laughed Baby Bunty! 
And if the bath tub doesn’t sprinkle paregoric 
perfume on the wash rag, thinking it’s a hand- 
kerchief, I’ll tell you next about Uncle Wig- 
gily and Bunty’s medicine. 


STORY VI 


UNCLE WIGGILY AND BUNTY’s MEDICINE 

‘‘Oh, Baby Bunty! Baby Bunty!’’ called 
Nurse Jane Fuzzy Wuzzy, to the little rabbit 
girl, who had been found in a hollow stump by 
Uncle Wiggily Longears. “Ho, Baby Bunty! 
Come here, quickly!’’ called the muskrat lady 
housekeeper of the rabbit’s bungalaw, 

“Does Uncle Wiggily want to play tag with 
me, or hide-and-go-seek?” asked Baby Bunty, 
as she came running in from the front yard. 
She had been playing dolls with Susie Littletail, 
the big rabbit girl, and with Lulu and Alice 
Wibblewobhle, the duck girls. “Does Uncle 
Wiggily want to chase me?” asked Baby Bunty. 

“No, indeed!” answered Nurse Jane. “You 
are altogether too lively for Uncle Wiggily, I’m 
afraid. He is so stiff and lame, from having 
chased your doll yesterday, as you were pulling 
it along through the wood by a string — Uncle 
Wiggily is so lame from his fast hopping that 
you’ll have to go get Dr. Possum.” 

“What for?” asked Baby Bunty, who was, 
indeed, a lively little rabbit girl, always wanting 
the bunny gentleman to play with her and chase 

33 


34 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


her. She said it kept him lively. Well, it did 
to a certain extent. “Why does Unk Wig want 
Dr. Possum?” asked Baby Bunty, giving Mr. 
Longears one of his pet names. 

“Because he is ill,” said Nurse Jane. “He 
is so lame and stiff that he just sits in an easy 
chair and grunts. Dr. Possum will come and 
give Uncle Wiggily some medicine and then he’ll 
be better.” 

“All right! I’ll go!” said Baby Bunty, and 
pretty soon she came riding back with the ani- 
mal doctor in his automobile. 

“My! But you came quickly!” said Nurse 
Jane, as Dr. Possum stopped his car amid a 
shower of leaves, in front of Uncle Wiggily’s 
hollow stump bungalow. 

“I just had to!” said Dr. Possum, getting out 
and curling his long tail around his satchel of 
pink, blue, red, yellow and skilligimink colored 
pills. “Baby Bunty said if I didn’t ride here 
as fast as I could make the auto go, maybe 
Uncle Wiggily would never get better.” 

“Oh, I think it isn’t quite as bad as that,” said 
Nurse Jane. “Still Uncle Wiggily is very lame 
and stiff. He says he can’t move, from having 
hopped too lively yesterday.” 

“Hum! Anybody would be lively where 
Baby Bunty was,” spoke Dr. Possum. “Now, 
I’ll have a look at my Uncle Wiggily friend.”' 


Uncle Wiggily and Bunty’s Medicine 35 


Well, Dr. Possum gave Mr. Longears red 
pills and pink pills and yellow pills and brown 
pills, but still, all that day, the rabbit gentleman 
sat in his chair and grunted and groaned and 
said he was so stiff he couldn’t move. Dr. 
Possum shook his head. 

“I can’t understand it,” he said. “There 
doesn’t seem to be much the matter with Uncle 
Wiggily, but yet he won’t get up and move 
about. Suppose you make him some sassafras 
tea,” he said to Nurse Jane. 

‘T will,” she promised. So Dr. Possum 
went away, and Nurse Jane went out in the 
woods to dig up some sassafras roots, and Baby 
Bunty was left home with Uncle Wiggily- 
The rabbit gentleman sat in his easy chair, with 
his eyes shut and his pink nose twinkled hardly 
any. 

“How do you feel now?” asked Baby Bunty. 

“Oh, perhaps if I read the paper I’d feel 
better,” said Mr. Longears. 

Baby Bunty handed it to him. 

“Now, if you’ll give me my glasses, my dear,” 
went on Uncle Wiggily, “I’ll sit here and read 
until Nurse Jane comes back.” 

A queer look came over Baby Bunty’s face. 

“Where are your glasses?” she asked. 

“On the mantel,” said the rabbit gentleman. 
Baby Bunty looked. 


36 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


‘‘I don’t see them,” she answered. 

“Oh, maybe they’re on the clock shelf,” spoke 
Mr. Longears. 

“No, they aren’t there,” said Baby Bunty. 
“I guess you’ll have to get up and help me hunt 
for them, Uncle Wiggily.” 

“Oh, dear! I suppose I must,” groaned the 
bunny. Slowly, and with much groaning, he 
got out of his chair. He looked in several 
places for his glasses so he could read. But he 
could not find them. 

“Maybe they’re behind the piano,” said Baby 
Bunty. Uncle Wiggily looked there, but no 
glasses were to be found. “Maybe they’re over 
here under the couch!” cried Baby Bunty, hop- 
ping across the room. Uncle Wiggily followed 
her. The glasses were not there. “Maybe 
they’re out in the kitchen. Come on, run out 
there with me and look,” cried Baby Bunty. 

Uncle Wiggily did. And then such a chase, 
all over the hollow stump bungalow, as Baby 
Bunty led Uncle Wiggily looking for his 
glasses! Up stairs and down stairs he hopped, 
getting more and more lively all the while. 

Finally, when Uncle Wiggily was trying to 
jump up on top of the picture moulding, since 
Baby Bunty said his glasses might be there, in 
came Nurse Jane with the sassafras. 

“Why, Uncle Wiggily!” she cried. “Wliat’s 


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Uncle Wiggily and Bunty’s Medicine 37 


the matter? You must be all better by the 
lively way you hop about! What’s the matter?” 

“I’m looking for my glasses, and Baby Bunty 
is helping me,” answered Mr. Longears. 

“Why, how forgetful you are, Wiggily! 
There are your glasses, on top of your head, 
where you so often put them!” said Nurse Jane. 
“Didn’t you know they were there?” 

“No,” said Mr. Longears, “I didn’t.” 

“I did — all the while!” laughed Baby Bunty. 
“But I just wanted you to hop around lively 
and hunt for them. You aren’t stiff now, are 
you, Mr. Longears?” she asked, formal like. 

“No,” said Uncle Wiggily, twinkling his pink 
nose, “I am not at all stiff! Yours was the best 
tnedicine, Baby Bunty!” 

And if the mince pie doesn’t dream that it’s 
a trolley car and try to run a race with the rag 
doll’s automobile. I’ll tell you next about Uncle 
Wiggily and Bunty’s picnic. 


STORY VII 


UNCLE WIGGILY AND BUNTY’s PICNIC 

“What are you going to do today. Uncle 
Wiggily?” asked Baby Bunty, as she saw the 
rabbit gentleman sitting in the sun on a bench 
at the side of his hollow stump bungalow one 
morning. 

“Oh! I’m going to take a little hop through 
the woods, and perhaps call on Grandfather 
Goosey Gander, to see if he is well again, after 
having had a cold in his bill,” spoke Mr. 
Longears. 

“Oh, dear!” sighed Baby Bunty, the little 
rabbit girl, who was hidden in a hollow stump 
until Uncle Wiggily found her. 

“What’s the matter?” asked the rabbit gentle- 
man. “Didn’t I hop around enough to suit you 
when I was looking for my glasses and they 
were on top of my head all the while!” 

“Oh ! you hopped enough, and you cured your 
stiffness,” said Baby Bunty. “But if you are 
going to the woods,” said the little tot, “can’t 
you take me for a picnic? I haven’t had a 
picnic in ever so long.” 

“Oh, ho! So you want a picnic!” laughed 

38 


Uncle Wiggily and Bunty’s Picnic 39 


Uncle Wiggily. “Well, I guess we might have 
one. Tell Nurse Jane to make some carrot 
sandwiches, and some turnip flopovers, and a 
few lettuce ice cream cones, and we’ll go in the 
woods and have a picnic.” 

“Oh, goodie! Oh, joy!” cried Baby Bunty, 
and she clapped her paws together and tried 
to make her teeny weeny pink nose twinkle 
as Uncle Wiggily made his. But, of course, it 
wasn’t the same. 

In a little while Nurse Jane had put up a 
nice lunch in a birch bark basket, and Uncle 
Wiggily and Baby Bunty started to hop 
through the woods. 

“Oh! there goes Billie Bushytail, the squirrel 
boy, and his brother Johnnie is with him,” sud' 
denly called the baby rabbit after a whilec 
“May they come to our picnic?” 

“Surely,” answered Uncle Wiggily. And 
after that he and Baby Bunty saw Lulu, Jim- 
mie and Alice Wibblewobble, the ducks, and 
Jackie and Peetie Bow Wow, the puppy dog 
boys, and Nannie and Billie Wagtail, the goats. 

“Bring them all to our picnic!” invited Uncle 
Wiggily. “We have limch enough for all.” 
So all the animal children went to Baby Bunty’s 
picnic. 

Under a tree, on a carpet of green moss, with 
a fringe of ferns about it, and using toadstools 


40 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


for seats, the rabbit gentleman and Baby Bunty 
and their friends started the picnic. They had 
carrot sandwiches, lettuce cakes, turnip jump- 
arounds and cabbage cookies. 

“This is a jolly picnic!” said everybody. 

“I’m glad you like it,” spoke Baby Bunty. 

And then, all of a sudden, Jackie Bow Wow 
gave a soft little bark, and said to Baby Bunty: 

“Look! Uncle Wiggily is going to sleep. 
We can’t have any fun at this picnic if he goes 
to sleep! He ought to play games with us, 
make whistles from the willow tree and all 
things like that.” 

“Yes,” said Baby Bunty, “so he ought. Oh, 
dear! I wish Uncle Wiggily wouldn’t go to 
sleep after he eats ! But he almost always does, 
of late, even at home. I guess he is getting old 
and stiff.” 

“Can’t you make him wake up and be more 
lively?” asked Lulu Wibblewobble, as she helped 
a little ant lady lift some carrot bread crmnbs 
over a fallen leaf. 

“I’ll try,” said Baby Bunty. “A picnic isn’t 
any fun unless you play games. And if Uncle 
Wiggily is going to sleep all the while we can’t 
play games with him. Now just watch me!” 

Baby Bunty slipped up behind Uncle Wig- 
gily, and, taking a long green fern leaf, she 
softly lickled the bunny rabbit on one of his ears. 


Uncle Wiggily and Bunty’s Picnic 41 


“A-ker-choo! Goo-zeesium !” suddenly sneezed 
the bunny. 

‘‘Oh! He’s waking up!” quacked Jimmie 
the duck. 

“Hush!” whispered Baby Bunty, Then she 
tickled the rabbit gentleman on his other ear. 

“Wa-hoo! Zoop! Zing!” gargled Uncle Wig- 

giiy- 

“Oh, he’s getting real excited like!” barked 
Peetie Bow Wow. 

“Wait a minute!” begged Baby Bunty, keep- 
ing out of sight. 

Then she took a soft piece of grass and she 
let it flicker gently over Uncle Wiggily’s pink 
nose, which never twinkled when he was asleep. 
All of a sudden the bunny rabbit gentleman 
cried: 

“Oh zip! Doodle-de-oodle! Gurr! Wafty- 
zup !” And he sneezed and opened his eyes and 
sat up and said: “Is anything the matter?” 

“Oh, no!” answered Baby Bunty sweetly. 
“We just want you to play some games with 
us; that’s all.” 

“Play games! Of course I’ll play games. I 
always do at a picnic,” laughed the rabbit gen- 
tleman. “I declare ! I must have been asleep !” 
he said. “And I dreamed that a ladybug 
tickled me !” 

“Oh, no! Nothing like that! Can you 


42 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


imagine!” laughed Baby Bunty. And all the 
other animal children laughed, too. Then 
Uncle Wiggily played ‘'Hop Over the Stump” 
and all such fashion games with them, and they 
had a fine time at the picnic. And if the pump- 
kin pie doesn’t take the chocolate cake out in 
the dark and lose it, so there aren’t any cookies 
for the goldfish. I’ll tell you next about Uncle 
Wiggily and Bimty’s bouquet. 


STORY VIII 


UNCLE WIGGILY AND BUNTY’s BOUQUET 

“Will you do me just a little favor, Uncle 
Wiggily?” asked Baby Bunty one day, as she 
came home from school, and saw the dear old 
rabbit gentleman sitting in the sun outside his 
hollow stump bungalow. 

“Do you a favor? Why, of course, I will. 
Baby Bunty,” said Mr. Longears to the little 
rabbit girl he had found in the woods. “But 
I hope it is a favor that will not make me hop 
around. I am a bit stiff from having gone on 
the picnic with you yesterday. Though I had 
a good time, after all,” he said. 

“I’m glad you did,” said Baby Bunty. “This 
favor is a very easy one. You can sit there and 
do it. All I want you to do it to tell me what 
kind of woodland flowers to pick for a bouquet 
for the lady mouse teacher in the hollow stump 
school.” 

“Oh, ho!” cried Uncle Wiggily. “So your 
lady mouse teacher wants a bouquet, does she?” 

“Yes,” answered Baby Bunty. “She told 
each one of us to bring wild flowers to school 
tomorrow. Sammie and Susie Littletail, and 
43 


44} Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


Johnnie and Billie Bushytail, and Lulu and 
Alice and Jimmie Wibblewobble — they all know 
where to look in the woods for the blossoms* 
But I’m such a little rabbit girl I don’t know. 
So if you’ll tell me about the flowers, I’ll go 
pick them before supper, and have them ready 
for tomorrow.” 

“Well,” said Uncle Wiggily, slowly like and 
disengaged, as he tilted back on his easy chair, 
“there are red flowers and blue ones, and golden 
yellow ones, and some of purple. They will 
make a nice bouquet when you pick them. Now 
run off in the woods. Baby Bunty, and pick 
some flowers. Then you’ll have pretty posies 
for your teacher.” 

Uncle Wiggily closed his eyes, gave his pink 
nose a soft little twinkle and was dozing off 
again into a little before-supper sleep. Baby 
Bunty shook her little head. 

“This will never do,” she thought. “Uncle 
Wiggily will get old and stiff, and he’ll think 
his rheumatism is worse and all things like that 
if I let him keep so quiet. I must rouse him up. 
I haven’t time to make him chase me, as I want 
to gather flowers. What shall I do? Oh, I 
know!” 

Softly Baby Bunty hopped off on her tippy 
tip-paws. Into the woods, not far from the 
hollow stump bungalow, she went, and there she 


Uncle Wiggily and Bunty’s Bouquet 45 


saw some red flowers. She began to pick them, 
looking back, now and then, through the trees 
to where Uncle Wiggily was asleep against the 
side of his hollow stiunp bungalow. 

“I must rouse him up and make him more 
lively!” thought Baby Bunty. Then, all of a 
sudden, as she was picking pink flowers she 
gave a little scream and cried: 

“Oh, Uncle Wiggily! Come quick! Here’s 
a big snake after me!” 

“What’s that! A snake! A snake after 
Baby Bunty when she’s picking a flower bou- 
quet for teacher?” cried the rabbit gentleman, 
suddenly waking up. “That must never be!” 

Quickly he sprang from the bark bench on 
which he had been sitting. Over to the edge 
of the woods he ran, where Baby Bunty was 
picking a bouquet. 

“Where’s the snake?” asked Uncle Wiggily, 
all ready to kindly ask the crawly creature to 
go away and not hurt the little rabbit girl. 
“Where’s the snake?” 

“There!” cried Baby Bunty, pointing to 
something squirming on the ground. 

“That? Why that is only an angle worm!” 
said Uncle Wiggily with a laugh. “He won’t 
hurt you, Baby Bunty.” 

“Oh! Only an angle worm!” said the little 


46 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


rabbit girl, innocent - like and dissembling. 
“Why, I thought it was a snake!” 

The angle worm crawled away, laughing to 
himself. Uncle Wiggily went back to sleep 
and Baby Bunty went on picking her bouquet. 
She glanced back to where Mr. Longears was 
having a nap. Then Baby Bunty suddenly 
cried again: 

“Oh, Uncle Wiggily! There’s a big beast in 
an aeroplane airship fljdng after me! Come 
quick and drive him away! '^h! Oh!” 

“A big beast in an airship!” exclaimed the 
rabbit gentleman, suddenly waking up. “Oh, 
ho! I’ll soon drive him away!” He ran to 
Baby Bunty. 

“There it is!” she said, pointing her paw to 
something fluttering in the air. 

“That? Why, that’s only a dragon fly!” said 
Uncle Wiggily. “He will never hurt you. All 
he does is to eat mosquitoes.” And back the 
bunny went to sleep, while the dragon fly flew 
on, laughing to himself. 

Pretty soon Baby Bunty, who now had some 
red, white and blue flowers for her bouquet, 
called: 

“Oh, Uncle Wiggily! There’s a big, wild, 
spotted leopard after me! Come quick!” 

Uncle Wiggily jumped up so quickly from 
his sleep that he upset the bark bench. 


Uncle Wiggily and Bimty’s Bouquet 47 


“Where’s the spotted leopard?” he cried. 

“There!” said Baby Bunty, pointing. 

“That! Why, that’s only Billy No Tail, the 
spotted frog boy!” said Uncle Wiggily. “He 
won’t hurt you!” 

“Oh!” said Baby Bunty softly, “I thought he 
was a green and yellow spotted leopard. Well, 
as long as I have roused you up so often. Uncle 
Wiggily, don’t you think you’d better stay 
awake now, and help me pick teacher’s bouquet? 
It will keep you from getting stiff.” 

“I suppose so,” said the rabbit gentleman, 
sore of sighing resigned like. And as he helped 
pick the flowers he heard Baby Bunty laugh 
softly every now and then. 

“I wonder,” thought Uncle Wiggily, “if she 
knew, all the while, that it was only an angle 
worm, a dragon fly and the frog boy? I 
wonder ?” 

And so do I. And if the Thanksgiving 
Fourth of July pinwheel doesn’t scratch the 
baby’s rattle box and make it squeak like a tin 
horn I’ll tell you next about Uncle Wiggily and 
Bunty’s hat. 


STORY IX 


UNCLE WIGGILY AND BUNTY’s HAT 

Once upon a time Nurse Jane Fuzzy Wuzzy 
promised Baby Bunty, the little rabbit girl, who 
lived with Uncle Wiggily, to take her down to 
the fifteen and sixteen cent store to buy a new 
hat. 

But at the last minute Nurse Jane had to go 
over to help Mrs. Wibblewobble, the duck lady, 
make sugar cookies. 

‘T’ll take Baby Bunty to the five and ten cent 
store myself,” said Uncle Wiggily. “I’ll help 
her get a new hat.” 

“Oh, joy!” cried Baby Bunty. “I love to go 
shopping with you. Uncle Wiggily. Only we’ll 
go to the nineteen and twenty cent store. They 
have lovely hats there! Why, some have grass- 
colored ribbons and one has real cabbage leaf 
trimmings.” 

“That will be fine!” laughed Uncle Wiggily. 
“When you are himgry you can eat part of your 
hat, Bunty.” 

“Oh, I’il never do that!” said the little rabbit 
girl, who had been found in a hollow stump. 

So Nurse Jane went over to Mrs. Wibble- 
48 


Uncle Wiggily and Bunty’s Hat 49 


wobble’s and Uncle Wiggily started for the 
three and four cent store — ^no, I’m wrong — it 
was the nineteen and twenty. Baby Bunty 
skipped on ahead, running two and fro, jumping 
over bushes and snuggling down in clumps of 
ferns, as though playing hide and seek. Uncle 
Wiggily went more slowly and rheumatic like. 

“Why don’t you jump, as I do?” asked Baby 
Bunty. 

“Oh, my joints are too stiff,” said the bunny 
rabbit. “I’m getting old. Baby Bunty.” 

“Well, then I’ll have to make you lively!” 
cried the little rabbit girl. 

“Oh, please don’t do any more of your tricks 1” 
begged Uncle Wiggily with a laugh. “Just let 
me hobble along in peace and quietness on my 
rheumatism crutch. And, Baby Bunty, there is 
one favor I want to beg of you.” 

“What is it?” asked the little rabbit girl as 
she waved her paw to a spotted lady bug, 
friendly like. 

“Don’t ask me to go in that eleven and twelve 
cent store with you to get your new hat,” spoke 
the bunny. “I’ll go as far as the door with you 
and give you the money. But I’ll wait outside. 
I never can bear to hop up and down the aisles, 
from the soap department over to the lace veil 
counter doing shopping. I’ll wait for you out- 
side.” 


50 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


“Very well,” said Baby Bunty. “But I think 
it would do your stiffness good to come in. 
However, we shall see.” 

So Uncle Wiggily hopped on with the lively 
little rabbit girl, and soon they were at the — 
nineteen and twenty cent store, I think. You 
can look back and make sure. 

“Now, I’ll wait here for you,” said the rabbit 
gentleman, sitting down in a sunny piace out- 
side. “Take the money and get a new hat 
Bunty.” 

“What’s the matter with your pa? Isn’t h ) 
feeling well?” asked a little mousie girl clerk, 
as she came up to wait on Baby Bunty, and saw 
the rabbit gentleman staying outside. 

“That isn’t my pa — ^it’s Uncle Wiggily,” said 
the little shopper. “He’s getting stiff, but I’ll 
soon make him feel better.” 

Then she began to shop around and look at 
hats, and pretty soon, having tried on one with 
carrot trimmings, she went to the door and ^ 
called : 

“Uncle Wiggily! Please come in and see if 
this looks well on me!” 

“Oh, my!” groaned Uncle Wiggily. “Must 
I come in? Well, only this once.” 

Slowly he hopped in, looked at Bunty’s hat, 
and said: 



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Uncle Wiggily and Bunty’s Hat 51 


“Oh, yes. That’s fine. Have it wrapped up 
and we’ll get home.” 

“Oh, but there’s a hat with real radishes on, 
up on the next floor!” said the little rabbit girl, 
as she laid aside the carrot hat. “Let’s go look 
at that!” 

Up the stairs she hopped and Uncle Wiggily 
had to hop after, groaning at his aching joints. 
Baby Bunty tried on the radish hat. 

“That’s fine!” said Uncle Wiggily. “Buy it!” 

“Oh, but there’s one on the next floor with a 
cabbage leaf crown. I want you to see how I 
look in that!” said Baby Bunty. Up the stairs 
she hopped and Uncle Wiggily hopped after 
her. She tried on the cabbage hat. 

“Buy it! Oh, buy it!” begged the bunny. 

“Oh, but on the next floor is a hat with 
cucumber salad all around the edges !” said 
Bunty. “I might look better in that!” Up 
the stairs she hopped and Uncle Wiggily hopped 
after her. 

Well, sir. Baby Bunty tried on forty-’leven 
hats before she found one she liked, and by that 
time Uncle Wiggily was so lively, from hopping 
up and down stairs, that he felt real reckless like 
and sporty, and he bought two ice cream cones. 
He said he felt so good he had to have a treat. 

“I thought you’d like to come shopping!” said 
Baby Bunty. And Uncle Wiggily only 


52 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


twinkled his pink nose. But if the molasses jug 
doesn’t take the candy stick to beat the parlor 
rug when it’s trying to race with the kitchen 
oilcloth. I’ll tell you next about Uncle Wiggily 
and Bunty’s shoes. 


STORY X 


UNCLE WIGGILY AND BUNTY’s SHOES 

“Uncle Wiggily, I am sorry to trouble you,” 
said Nurse Jane Fuzzy Wuzzy, the muskrat 
lady housekeeper to the bunny rabbit gentleman 
one day, “but do you think you could go to the 
store for me? Or are you too stiff? Is your 
rheumatism too bad?” 

Uncle Wiggily looked all around the hollow 
stump bungalow before answering. Then he 
asked : 

“Is Baby Bunty here?” 

“Not just now,” replied Miss Fuzzy Wuzzy, 
trying not to smile. “Why do you ask?” 

“Because if I say I’m too stiff and old to go 
to the store for you she’ll say I’m not too stiff 
to play tag with her. And I certainly am!” said 
Uncle Wiggily, positive like and semi-emphatic. 
“I don’t want to move about quickly at all today. 
I just want to go slow and easy like.” 

“Then you may,” said Nurse Jane. “I only 
want you to go to the store for me and get Baby 
Bunty’s shoes!” 

“Azat’s that?” cried Mr. Longears, and he 
gave such a jump that his pink nose stopped 
53 


54 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


twinkling. “I thought you said you wanted me 
to go to the store for you. Nurse Jane.” 

“So I do. I’d have to go after Bunty’s shoes 
if you didn’t, and, really, I haven’t time. But 
you don’t have to take Baby Bunty, so you may 
hop as slowly as you like. I took her down and 
she tried on the shoes yesterday. I left them 
lo be stretched. All you have to do is to bring 
them home.” 

“Oh, that’s all right,” said Uncle Wiggily. 
“I like Baby Bunty, and all that, but when I 
want to hop slowly she wants to play tag and 
the like of such nonsense. I’ll go to the store 
alone.” 

Away he started, leaning on his red, white and 
blue striped rheumatism crutch that Nurse Jane 
had gnawed for him out of a cornstalk. And 
Uncle Wiggily had not hopped very far before 
he heard a voice calling: 

“Oh, Uncle Wiggily! Wait for me! Wait 
a minute!” 

“My goodness me, sakes alive and some pea- 
nut hash!” thought the bunny rabbit. “I hope 
that isn’t the Pipsisewah or the Skuddlemagoon 
after me!” 

He was just going to hide behind a tree when 
he saw that it was Baby Bunty who was hopping 
along through the woods. 

“Wait a minute. Uncle Wiggily!” she cried. 


Uncle Wggily and Bunty’s Shoes 55 


“Well, something is surely going to happen 
now,” thought the bunny rabbit. 

It did not take long for Baby Bunty to catch 
up to Mr. Longears, for she was a lively little 
rabbit girl. 

“Oh, Uncle Wiggily!” she gasped. “I know 
where you are going! You are going after my 
new shoes. I heard Nurse Jane tell you! I 
was playing tag down behind the rain water 
barrel. I didn’t mean to listen, but I couldn’t 
help hearing. Please take me with you.” 

Well, what could Uncle Wiggily do? He 
didn’t want to hurt Baby Bunty’s feelings, and 
he certainly was going after her shoes. So he 
said: 

“Now, look here, Baby Bunty! No tricks, 
you know! No making me hop up and down 
stairs to look at you try on new hats, you know!” 

“Of course not !” laughed the little rabbit girl. 
“Besides, we are going after shoes today, and 
I don’t have to try them on. Nurse Jane helped 
me buy them yesterday. I’ll be good.” 

“And please be quiet — don’t make me do any 
extra hopping today!” begged the bunny rabbit 
gentleman. “My joints are too stiff.” 

Baby Bunty had a funny little twinkle in her 
eyes as she hopped along with Mr. Longears. 
Soon they were at the shoe store and a nice rat 
gentleman handed Mr. Longears a neat package. 


56 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


‘‘Well, this isn’t so bad,” thought the bunny 
rabbit. “There’s to be no trying on, and, in 
consequence, there can be no hopping up and 
down stairs.” 

With the shoe package under one leg, and 
holding Bunty ’s paw in his other one. Uncle 
Wiggily started back for the hollow stump 
bungalow. 

“Can’t we go any faster than this?” asked 
Baby Bunty. “I want to hurry home and wear 
my new shoes.” 

“Oh, this is fast enough for my rheumatic 
joints,” spoke the rabbit gentleman, contented 
like. 

Baby Bunty started to run backward. 

“Why — why — where are you going?” asked 
Uncle Wiggily. 

“Oh, I think the man forgot to put any laces 
in my new shoes !” cried Baby Bunty. “I must 
run back and get them. You wait for me. 
Uncle Wiggily.” 

“No, I can’t wait,” said Mr. Longears. “I 
must go with you, to see that you don’t get lost!” 

Back ran Baby Bunty and back ran Uncle 
Wiggily. And when they reached the shoe 
store the rat gentleman said: 

“Why, the lacers are in the shoes I” 

“Oh, how silly of me!” said Baby Bunty. 
“So they are! Now we must hop along fast. 


Uncle Wggily and Bunty’s Shoes 57 


Uncle Wiggily, or it will be dark before we get 
home!” So, whether he liked it or not, Uncle 
Wiggily had to hop along very fast, and so did 
Baby Bunty. But it’s a good thing they did, 
for, when they were almost at the hollow stump 
bungalow, out popped the bad Pipsisewah, try- 
ing to get the new shoes. 

And, only that Uncle Wiggily and Baby 
Bunty were hopping so fast, the Pip might have 
caught them. 

But he didn’t, I am glad to say, and when 
Baby Bunty reached home and tried on her new 
shoes they fitted perfectly, and Uncle Wiggily 
wasn’t hardly stiff at all. And if the lawn 
mower doesn’t try to cut a slice off the cake of 
soap for the goldfish to take a bath. I’ll tell you 
next about Uncle Wiggily and Bunty’s hair 
ribbon. 


STORY XI 


UNCLE WIGGILY AND BUNTY^'s RIBBON 

Once upon a time Baby Bunty, the little rab- 
bit girl, who was hidden in a hollow stump until 
she was found, said to Uncle Wiggily: 

‘‘Will you come with me for a walk in the 
woods today?’’ 

“Why, yes. Baby Bunty,” I think I will,” 
answered Mr. Longears. “But I am a bit stiff, 
and my rheumatism hurts a little, so please don’t 
ask me to chase you or do anything exciting like 
that.” 

“I won’t,” promised Baby Bunty, but, as she 
tied her red sky-blue pink hair ribbon around her 
neck, the little rabbit girl smiled in a queer way. 

“No,” she said to herself, as Uncle Wiggily 
took his red, white and blue striped rheumatism 
crutch down off the fence post, “I. won’t make 
him chase me, but I’ll keep him from going to 
sleep. He’s a dear old rabbit gentleman, but he’s 
getting old — or he thinks he is. I must keep him 
lively!” 

So Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty hopped 
off through the woods. Nurse Jane Fuzzy 
58 


Uncle Wiggily and Bunty’s Ribbon 59 


Wuzzy stood in the doorway of the hollow stump 
bungalow and watched them. 

“My! Baby Bunty has on her best hair ribbon 
today/’ said the muskrat lady housekeeper. “I 
hope nothing happens to it.” 

As Baby Bunty hopped along, now running 
ahead of Uncle Wiggily and now lagging behind 
to pick a pretty flower, all of a sudden her green 
yellow brown hair ribbon caught on a bush and 
the bow was untied. 

“Oh, Uncle Wiggily! Please tie my hair rib- 
bon!” cried Baby Bunty with a laugh. 

Uncle Wiggily leaned on his red white and 
blue striped rheumatism crutch, and, with his 
paws, tied Baby Bunty ’s ribbon. 

“There!” he said, as he patted down the big 
bow, which looked like the wings of a butterfly, 
“I hope your hair ribbon doesn’t come untied 
again.” 

“I hope so, too,” said Baby Bunty. 

On and on she hopped through the woods with 
Uncle Wiggily. They were looking for a nice 
place for the little rabbit girl to play. All of a 
sudden, as she was peeping down in a robin’s 
nest, to see how big the little birds were, her hair 
ribbon caught on a branch of a tree, and loose 
the bow came again. 

“Oh, Uncle Wiggily! Will you please tie my 
hair ribbon?” cried Baby Bunty with a laugh. 


60 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


“Dear me!” said Uncle Wiggily. That’s a 
very loose ribbon, Baby Bunty! I ought to have 
brought some glue to make the bow stay tied 
fast.” 

But he fixed it for the little rabbit girl, and 
on they hopped again. Pretty soon they came 
to a beautiful place in the woods. On the ground 
was a soft velvet carpet of green grass. Around 
it was a fringe of ferns. Overhead was a big 
umbrella of trees, which kept off the hot sun. 

“Here is a good place for you to play. Baby 
Bunty,” said Uncle Wiggily. “You may gather 
flowers, hop on the grass or even turn somer- 
saults.” 

“And what are you going to do. Uncle Wig- 
gily?” asked the little rabbit girl. 

“Oh, I shall go to sleep,” said the old gentle- 
man rabbit. 

Baby Bunty widnkled up her nose in a funny 
little way, but she didn’t say anything — just 
then. Uncle Wiggily found a soft stump for a 
seat, with a soft mossy covered tree for a back 
rest, and there he sat down. Pretty soon his eyes 
closed, his pink nose stopped twinkling, and he 
was asleep. 

“Oh, dear!” said Baby Bunty. “This isn’t any 
fun — ^to have him go to sleep! Ah, I know what 
I’ll do!” 

She played around a little, turning pepper- 


Uncle Wiggily and Bunty’s Ribbon 61 


saults and somersaults, and, all at once, she gave 
her hair ribbon a little pull. 

“Oh, Uncle Wiggily!” she cried, running up 
to the rabbit gentleman. “My ribbon is untied 
again! Please fix it for me !” 

Uncle Wiggily opened his eyes and grunted. 

“It seems to me your hair ribbon is always 
coming untied,” he said. But he made a nice 
fancy bow for Baby Bunty, and then he went to 
sleep again, while she played about. But, pretty 
soon back she hopped. 

“Oh, Uncle Wiggily!” she cried. 

“What!” exclaimed the old rabbit gentleman. 
“Is your hair ribbon loose again? Am I never 
to get any sleep?” 

“It isn’t my hair ribbon this time,” said Baby 
Bunt)^ “But I saw a big fox sneaking along in 
the bushes behind you, and I thought he might 
bite some souse off your ears, so I woke you up !” 

“I’m glad you did!” cried Uncle Wiggily. 
“And you awakened me just in time, too. Now 
we can run away before the fox gets us!” 

And run away they did, and the old fox didn’t 
get them. 

“But I would have had a nice lot of souse off 
Uncle Wiggily’s ears, if Baby Bunty hadn’t 
awakened him,” said the fox, hungry like. 

And, if the green grass doesn’t turn pink when 
the red rose leaves fall on it. I’ll tell you next 
about Uncle Wiggily and Bunty’s ball. 


STORY XII 


UNCLE WIGGILY AND BUNTY's BALL 

‘‘Will you come for another nice walk in the 
woods, today, Uncle Wiggily?” asked Baby 
Bunty, the little rabbit girl, as she danced around 
the hollow stump bungalow where she lived with 
Mr, Longears. 

“Hum! Another nice walk in the woods; eh?” 
asked Uncle Wiggily, suspicious like and pre- 
meditated. “Are you going to wear a big hair 
ribbon bow, that comes untied all the while?” he 
asked. 

“Oh, no!” laughed Baby Bunty. “I’ll only 
jwear a tiny bow today. I won’t keep waking you 
up all the time to tie it for me.” 

That’s what Baby Bunty did in the story 
before this, if you will kindly remember. But, 
after all, it was a good thing she did. On account 
of the fox, you know. 

“Well, come along!” said Uncle Wiggily, 
after he had asked his muskrat lady housekeeper, 
Xurse Jane Fuzzy Wuzzy, what they were 
going to have for dinner. 

“May I bring my rubber ball?” asked Baby 
Bunty, as she came out of the hollow stump 
62 


Uncle Wiggily and Bunty’s Ball 63 


bungalow with a very small pumpkin-colored 
hair ribbon around her ears. 

‘‘Oh, yes, bring your ball along,” said Uncle 
Wiggily kindly. “But please don’t sprinkle any 
water from it on me while I’m asleep.” 

“I won’t,” promised Baby Bunty. And then, 
as Uncle Wiggily hopped along on his red, white 
and blue striped rheumatism crutch, and as Baby 
Bunty ran along beside him, the little rabbit girl 
said: “Oh, dear! If he’s going to sleep every 
time we come to the woods. I’ll have no fun at 
all. But maybe I’ll find a way to keep him 
awake,” she said to herself, as she bounced her 
rubber ball. 

On they went through the green woods. Baby 
Bunty running to and fro as fast as an auto- 
mobile, and Uncle Wiggily coming along more 
like a trolley car, substantial-like, though un- 
poetical. The little rabbit girl picked pretty flow- 
ers now and then, while Mr. Longears chewed 
a bit of birch bark, or nibbled at sassafras and 
wintergreen, hoping it would cure his rheuma- 
tism. 

“Now here is a nice place for you to play, 
Baby Bunty,” said Uncle Wiggily when they 
reached a green glade in the forest. “And I’ll 
just sit down on this soft, mossy log and think 
a bit.” 

“Yes, I know what that means!” whispered 


64 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


Baby Bunty to herself. “It means he’ll go to 
sleep and won’t play tag or anything with me, 
and I can’t have any fun! Oh, dear!” 

She bounced her ball on a bare, sandy place, 
while Uncle Wiggily picked out the softest, 
green, mossy log he could find. He laid aside 
his rheumatism crutch, took off his tall silk hat, 
and, folding his paws over his red vest, closed 
his eyes. His pink nose stopped twinkling 

“He’s asleep !” said Baby Bunty. 

All of a sudden her bouncing rubber ball gave 
a big jump, and before the little rabbit girl could 
get her paws on it the rubber ball bounded right 
over on Uncle Wiggily’s bare head. 

“Oh, I say! A-ker-choo! Wliat’s that?” he 
cried, waking up all at once, and not partly, as 
he did sometimes. 

“It is only my rubber ball!” said Bunty 
sweetly. “I’m so sorry it struck you! But, now 
that you are awake, don’t you want to play tag 
with me?” 

“Not now,” said Uncle Wiggily. “I will latex. 
I haven’t had my nap out yet. Please be care- 
ful of your ball, Baby Bunty.” ^ 

“I will,” said the little rabbit girl with a smile. 

Uncle Wiggily closed his eyes again, and he 
was just slumbering nicely, when, just as Baby 
Bunty gave her rubber ball an extra hard bounce. 


Uncle Wiggily and Bunty’s Ball 65 


away it flew again, and this time it landed right 
on the rabbit gentleman’s pink nose. 

“My goodness me, sakes alive and some rice 
pudding without any raisins in!” he cried. 
“What’s that?” 

“Only my rubber ball,” said Bunty, sweetly. 
“I’m sorry it awakened you. Don’t you want 
to ” 

“I want to flnish my nap,” said Uncle Wig- 
gily. “Please go away far off and bounce your 
ball, Bunty.” 

Once more he went to sleep. Baby Bunty, 
with a funny look on her face, hopped off in the 
woods. Then, all of a sudden, through the trees 
came flying her rubber ball. Straight as an arrow 
it flew, and it struck Uncle Wiggily right on his 
red vest. 

“Oh, my goodness me, sakes alive and some 
peanut lollypops!” he cried. “Is that your ball 
again, Bunty?” 

“Yes,” said the little rabbit girl, “it is. I was 
trying to throw it so Bully No-Tail, the frog boy, 
could toss it back to me. But I guess I didn’t 
throw straight enough. I’m sorry my ball hit 
you. Uncle Wiggily, but, now that you are 
awake, don’t you want to ” 

“Oh, yes. I’ll play tag or hide-and-go seek or 
even turn somersaults!” laughed the bunny. 


66 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


“Between you and your ball. Baby Bunty, I’ll 
never get any sleep!” 

“I thought you wouldn’t,” said Baby Bunty, 
smiling in a funny way. Then she and Mr. 
Longears had lots of fun. And, if the sunshine 
doesn’t tickle the raindrops and make them fall 
on the umbrella plant, I’ll tell you next about 
Uncle Wiggily and Bunty’s carriage. 


STORY XIII 


UNCLE WIGGILY AND BUNTY^S CABEIAGE 

“Oh, Uncle Wiggily, Uncle Wiggily,” called 
a jolly voice one day outside the hollow stump 
bungalow, where Mr. Longears, the rabbit gen- 
tleman, lived with Nurse Jane Fuzzy Wuzzy, 
the muskrat lady housekeeper. 

“Ha! I wonder if that’s Sammie or Susie Lit- 
tletail, or Johnnie or Billie Bushy tail?” asked 
Uncle Wiggily, as he turned a leaf of the cab- 
bage newspaper he was reading. 

“That’s Baby Bunty,” said Nurse Jane. “I 
guess she wants you to take her for a ride in 
her little red carriage. I see she has it out in 
front.” 

“Oh, I can’t play with Baby Bunty today!” 
said Uncle Wiggily quickly. “I must go over 
and call on Grandfather Goosey Gander.” 

“Baby Bunty will be so disappointed,” spoke 
Nurse Jane. 

“It’s too bad,” agreed Mr. Longears. “But I 
must have a little rest and quiet. Baby Bunty 
is so lively !” 

“Well, she keeps you that way, too,” said the 
muskrat lady. “And, on the whole, perhaps it 
67 


68 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


is a good thing for you. I believe you have 
become younger these last two weeks.” 

‘‘Hum!” said Uncle Wiggily, noncommital 
like and unconvinced. ‘‘Anyhow I can’t play 
with Baby Bunty this morning.” 

And when he told this to the little rabbit girl, 
whom he had found in a hollow stump, she said : 

“Oh, dear! Then I’ll have to go off in the 
woods by myself and pick wild flowers. But will 
you play with me some other time. Uncle Wig- 
gily, and chase me and have a game of tag and 
all that?” 

“Yes,” promised Uncle Wiggily, as he put on 
his tall silk hat, and looked to see if his pink 
nose was twinkling properly, “I’ll play with you 
later.” 

So he went one way through the woods, and 
Baby Bunty went another, pushing her carriage, 
in which she often used to be wheeled when she 
was smaller than she was now. 

“Don’t get lost!” said Uncle Wiggily, as he 
waved his paw to the little rabbit girl. 

“I’ll try not to,” she said. 

Uncle Wiggily had a nice visit with his old 
friend, Grandfather Goosey Gander. They 
talked about the time when they were young 
and spry. 

“But I’m getting old and stiff now,” said 
Uncle Wiggily. 


Uncle Wiggily and Bunty’s Carriage 69 


‘‘You need some one to keep you lively,” 
quacked Grandpa Goosey. 

“Oh, I have some one!” laughed Mr. Long- 
ears. “You should see Baby Bunty! Say, now 
I think of it, come on back to my hollow stump 
bungalow and stay to lunch. I’ll show you Baby 
Bunty — ^if she’s home. But she’s nearly always 
out in the woods, hopping around. She started 
off with her carriage just before I came here. 
Perhaps she went to get some one to give her 
a ride, as I had no time. Come and see Baby 
Bunty.” 

“I will!” promised Grandfather Goosey 
Gander. 

Together he and Uncle Wiggily went through 
the woods. But they had not traveled very far 
before, all at once. Grandpa Goosey cried: 

“Look there. Uncle Wiggily! What’s that 
rolling down the hill in front of us? It looks 
like a baby carriage!” 

“It is!” cried Mr. Longears, as he peered 
thi’ough his spectacles. “It’s Baby Bunty’s car- 
riage, and it’s running away down hill. Oh, she’ll 
be hurt! I must hop after that carriage and 
stop it!” 

“You never can catch that carriage!” quacked 
Grandpa Goosey. “It’s rolling down hill too 
fast! You are so old and stiff, like myself 


70 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


‘‘Am I old and stiff?’’ cried Uncle Wiggily. 
“You just watch me hop!” 

He jammed his tall silk hat down on his head, 
took a tight hold of his red, white and blue 
striped rheumatism crutch, and down the hill 
he leaped. 

Faster and faster rolled Baby Bunty’s car- 
riage! Faster and faster hopped Uncle Wig- 
gily, his coat-tails streaming out behind like two 
girls’s hair ribbons. 

“I’ll save you, Bunty! I’ll save you!” cried 
the rabbit gentleman. “Don’t jump out of the 
carriage. I’ll get you! I can hop fast, even if 
I am stiff!” 

With one big, extra long hop he reached the 
carriage, and caught hold of it in his paws just 
as it was going to tip over. He looked inside, 
thinking to see Baby Bunty half frightened out 
of her eye teeth, but, instead, there was only a 
big bouquet of wild flowers. 

“Well! Well! What does this mean?” asked 
Uncle Wiggily, all out of breath, but still not 
stiff any more. “What is all this?” 

“Oh, Uncle Wiggily!” cried Baby Bunty, 
from the top of the hill, where she stood with 
Grandpa Goosey, “did you think I was in that 
runaway carriage?” 

“I certainly did!” answered Mr. Longears. 

“Why, I wasn’t at all!” laughed Baby Bunty. 


Uncle Wiggily and Bunty’s Carriage 7i 


‘‘I just used it to hold the wild flowers I picked. 
And when I wheeled it to the top of the hill it 
slipped away from me, and ran down. My I But 
you did run fast, Uncle Wiggily 1” 

‘‘I should say he did!” quacked Granda 
Goosey. “Faster than I ever saw him hop 
before.^’ 

“But it’s good for his rheumatism,” spoke 
Baby Bunty. 

Mr. Longears never said a word as he wheeled 
the carriage up hill. But if the ice cream doesn’t 
melt when the gas stove asks it to dance the fox 
trot, I’ll tell you next about Uncle Wiggily and 
Bunty’s party. 


STORY XIV 


TJNCLE WIGGILY AND BUNTY^'s PARTY 

‘‘My goodness me, sakes alive. Nurse Jane!” 
cried Uncle Wiggily Longears one morning, as 
he came downstairs in his hollow stump bunga- 
low. “Why are you making so many caakes, pies 
and jam tarts? You have enough for a picnic!” 

“These are for Baby Bunty!” explained the 
muskrat lady housekeeper. 

“What! Is she going to eat all those?” asked 
Uncle Wiggily, sm'prised-like, not to say dis- 
concerted. 

“Oh, I’m going to let her have a play party 
in the yard,” explained Miss Fuzzy Wuzzy. 
“Baby Bunty has been a good little girl lately, 
and when she asked me if she couldn’t have a 
party, with real cakes and cookies, I said yes. 
I hope you don’t mind.” 

“Oh, not at all Not at all!” quickly cried 
Uncle Wiggily. “If Baby Bunty has a party 
she won’t want me to chase her, or play tag, or 
go off to the woods to keep young and from get- 
ting stiff. If she has a party I can have a good 
sleep and rest.” 

“But you’ll come to her party a little while, 
72 









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.lhW.N,M»..,nlrfM&>..Ml 










Uncle Wiggily and Bunty’s Party 73 


won’t you?” asked Nurse Jane. “Just look in 
to be polite, you know.” 

“Oh, yes,” answered the rabbit gentleman. 
“I’ll just drop in for a cup of tea.” 

Baby Bunty was delighted to have a party. 
She danced around the hollow stump bungalow 
and put on her best green yellow pink hair rib- 
bon, making Uncle Wiggily tie it for her. 

“You’re a dear, good, old Uncle Wiggily,” 
said Baby Bunty. “You’ll come to my party, 
won’t you?” 

“Yes, but I just want to sit on a soft stump 
and watch you and the other animal children 
play,” spoke Mr. Longears. “I’m getting too 
old and stiff for parties!” 

“We’ll see about that!” spoke Baby Bunty, 
with a funny little laugh. 

Nurse Jane made the jam tarts, she frosted 
the cakes and she put fancy trimmings on the 
cookies and pies. 

“Now everything is ready for your party!” 
said the muskrat lady to Baby Bunty. “Have 
you invited all your friends?” 

“Yes, and Uncle Wiggily, too,” said the little 
rabbit girl, who was once found asleep in a hol- 
low stump. 

The little party tables were set out under the 
grape vine, in the shade. Pretty soon along came 
Sammie and Susie Littletail, the rabbits; John- 


74 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


nie and Billie Bushytail, the squirrels; Lulu, 
Alice and Jimmie Wibblewobble, the ducks, and 
many others. 

‘‘Now, everybody sit down!” invited Baby 
Bunty, when they had gathered around the 
tables, jSlled with good things. “Welcome to my 
party! Uncle Wiggily, will you sing a little 
song?” 

Uncle Wiggily, who wore his newest red vest, 
looked surprised. But still he sang a song about 
once there was a carrot with a long and slender 
tail, and when it went out walking it swam in 
the water pail. 

“Now, everybody begin to eat!” invited Baby 
Bunty. “Oh, isn’t it fun to have a party ! Uncle 
Wiggily, please pass Jackie Bow Wow a puppy 
cake!” 

Uncle Wiggily, who had picked out a nice 
shady corner, and was just closing his eyes, 
opened them again, and passed the little doggie 
boy a cake. 

“I’ll just sit here quietly,” thought Uncle 
Wiggily to himself. “Pretty soon they’ll all be 
so busy eating that they won’t notice me. Then 
I can go to sleep and forget about my rheu- 
matism.” 

The animal children were laughing and talk- 
ing, and also eating the good things. Uncle Wig- 
gily’s eyes were closed. He was dreaming he and 


Uncle Wiggily and Bunty’s Party 75 


Grandpa Goosey Gander were playing Scotch 
checkers, when, all of a sudden. Baby Bunty 
said: 

‘'Uncle Wiggily, please pass Nannie Wagtail 
some paste pudding!” 

“Eh! What’s that? Oh, I guess I had my eyes 
shut!” said the bunny gentleman. But he passed 
the paste pudding to the little goat girl, and he 
was just going to sleep gain, when Bunty said: 

“Oh, Uncle Wiggily! Do try some of these 
turnip jam tarts! They’re wonderful!” 

“Oh, yes. Jam tarts!” stammered the rabbit 
gentleman, awakening suddenly. However, he 
managed to eat a tart, and he was almost asleep 
again when Bunty suddenly said: 

“Oh, Uncle Wiggily, will you please pass the 
rose leaf ice cream to Arabella Chick !” 

“Why, certainly,” said Uncle Wiggily, and 
he wondered if he would ever get a nice, quiet 
nap, such as he had counted on. After he had 
passed Lulu Wibblewobble some corn meal pud- 
din, the rabbit gentleman dozed off again, but 
he was suddenly awakened when Baby Bunty 
cried : 

“Oh, here they are! Here they come! Oh, 
look, everybody!” 

“My goodness me, sakes alive and some fire 
engines!” cried Mr. Longears, waking up so 
suddenly that he spilled some carrot marmalade 


76 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


on his red vest. “What’s the matter, Baby 
Bunty? Is it the Pipsisewah and the Skuddle- 
magoon come to spoil your party?” 

“Why, no,” answered the little rabbit girl, 
sweetly. “It’s just the grasshopper and the 
cricket musicians, who are coming to play for 
the dancing. May I have a one-step with you. 
Uncle Wiggily?” 

“Oh, Baby Bunty!” laughed Mr. Longears, 
as the grasshoppers tuned their hind-leg fiddles. 
“No one could go to sleep at your party!” 

“Nor grow old or stiff, either,” said Baby 
Bunty. Then they all had a fine time. And if 
the jumping Jack doesn’t fall out of the salt 
cellar and scare the coal man when he brings in 
the ice. I’ll tell you next about Uncle Wiggily 
and Bunty’s skipping rope. 


STORY XV 


UNCLE WIGGILY AND BUNTY'^S ROPE 

“Uncle Wiggily, would you do me a little 
favor?” asked Baby Bunty one morning, as she 
came out on the porch of the hollow stump bun- 
galow, where Mr. Longears, the rabbit gentle- 
man, was reading the paper. 

“Well, Baby Bunty!” said Uncle Wiggily, to 
the little rabbit girl, whom he had found in a 
hollow stump tree, “I’d do almost anything for 
you, but please don’t ask me to come to any 
more parties, or chase you or play tag, or take 
you out in the woods with your rubber ball. I 
simply can’t do that, for I am too old and stiff!” 

“Oh, this isn’t anything like that. All I want 
is for you to come with me while I buy a skip- 
ping rope. I want to learn to jump. All the 
other animal girls jump salt and pepper and 
vinegar and mustard, and I, too, want to learn.” 

“Well,” said Uncle Wiggily, slowly, “that 
sounds like an easy favor. I’ll come. Baby 
Bunty.” “She surely can’t make me jump rope,” 
said Mr. Longears to himself. “I’m safe this 
time. I’ll get a chance to sleep today.” 

So, putting on his tall silk hat, and taking his 
77 


78 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


red, white and blue striped rheumatism crutch 
with him, Uncle Wiggily hopped with Baby 
Bunty through the woods, to the ten and eleven 
cent store where wild grape vine jumping, or 
skipping, ropes were sold. 

“Give Baby Bunty a nice rope,” said Uncle 
Wiggily to the little mousie girl clerk behind the 
counter, and the little rabbit girl soon had the 
finest one you can imagine, with puff balls on 
the ends so her paws wouldn’t slip off. 

“Now I must learn to jump,” said Baby 
Bunty, as she and Uncle Wiggily started back 
through the woods. 

Baby Bunty had watched Lulu and Alice 
Wibblewobble, the ducks, and some of the other 
animal girls skipping their wild grape vine 
ropes, so the little rabbit girl knew something 
about it. She swung the rope over her head and 
jumped “salt,” which is very slow jumping 
indeed. 

“And while you are learning to skip rope. 
Baby Bunty,” said Uncle Wiggily, “I’ll just 
sit down on this soft green mossy log and go to 
sleep. You won’t mind, will you?” 

“Oh, no,” answered Baby Bunty. 

She found a nice, smooth place in the woods, 
where the green grass made a velvet carpet, and 
there Baby Bunty began to learn to jump. 


Uncle Wiggily and Bunty’s Rope 79 


Uncle Wiggily’s pink nose stopped twinkling, 
and he fell asleep. 

“Oh, dear!” said Baby Bunty, after a bit, “I 
never can learn all by myself. I’m going to tie 
one end of my grape vine rope to a tree, and 
ask Uncle Wiggily to turn the other end for me. 
Then I can learn to jump and, after a while. 
I’ll be able to turn for myself.” 

Gently she tickled Uncle Wiggily under the 
chin with a soft piece of grass. 

“Eh! What’s the matter? Mosquitoes?” cried 
the bunny gentleman, as he sat up suddenly and 
opened his eyes. 

“Oh, no,” answered Baby Bunty. “I’m sorry 
to wake you up. Uncle Wiggily, but will you 
please turn rope for me? Just turn it salt, which 
is very slowly, and perhaps you can do that and 
sleep at the same time.” 

“Perhaps!” said Uncle Wiggily, but rather 
doubtful like. “We’ll try.” 

So he took one end of the grape vine rope, 
while the other end was tied to a tree, and Uncle 
Wiggily turned for Baby Bunty. He turned 
slowly, as one must for “salt,” and Uncle Wig- 
gily’s eyes were just closing, and he was dozing 
off, when Baby Bunty said: 

“Oh, could you please turn a little faster. 
Uncle Wiggily? I’m beginning to learn how. 
Please turn as fast as pepper.” 


80 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


“All right,” said Mr. Longears, good-natured 
like and accommodating. So he turned faster — 
like pepper you know — and even at that he was 
soon falling asleep again, when Bunty cried: 

“Oh, I’m doing fine. Uncle Wiggily! I can 
even jump as fast as vinegar now, if you’ll turn 
more quickly for me.” 

“Well, I’ll turn faster,” said Mr. Longears. 
“But I can plainly see that I’ll get no sleep 
today.” 

So he turned “vinegar,” and Bunty jumped 
it easily, for she was fast learning how. Even 
then Uncle Wiggily nodded, and was almost 
going to sleep, when Bunty cried: 

“Oh, Uncle Wiggily! Please turn mustard! 
Turn mustard fashion as fast as you can! Wake 
up and turn mustard!” 

“Wliat’s this! Can you so soon jump as fast 
as mustard?” cried the bimny, sitting up and 
rubbing his eyes. 

“Oh, no, I can’t jump mustard yetP’ cried 
Bunty. “But I had to say something to wake 
you up quickly. Look, here comes the bad Pip- 
sisewah! We must run! Run as fast as you can! 
Rim mustard fashion!” 

“I will !” said Uncle Wiggily, and he did, and 
so did Bunty, and by running mustard, which is 
very fast, they soon got safely away from the 
bad Pipsisewah. 


Uncle Wiggily and Bunty’s Rope 81 


“Hum!” said the Pip, as he was left behind in 
the woods. “If it hadn’t been for Baby Bunty 
waking up Uncle Wiggily, I surely would have 
had his souse!” 

So it’s a good thing the little rabbit girl learned 
how to skip her grape vine rope, isn’t it? And 
the next day she could jump mustard. And if 
the automobile doesn’t go swimming in with the 
gold fish and make the poll parrot sleep in the 
cat’s cradle. I’ll tell you next about Uncle Wig- 
gily and Bunty’s scooter. 


STORY XVI 


UNCLE WIGGILY AND BUNTY^'s SCOOTER 

One day, when Uncle Wiggily Longears, the 
bunny rabbit gentleman, came home to his hol- 
low stump bungalow, having been over to call 
on Grandpa Goosey Gander, Mr. Longears saw 
Baby Bunty sitting on the front steps looking 
very sad and sorrowful. 

“What’s the matter?” asked Uncle Wiggily. 
“Did you lose your grape vine skipping rope. 
Baby Bunty?” 

“Oh, no,” answered the little rabbit girl. “My 
rope is all right, and I can jump salt, pepper, 
vinegar, mustard and even rice pudding. But I 
want a scooter. Uncle Wiggily! I want a scooter 
very much!” 

“A scooter!” cried the bunny rabbit gentle- 
man, in surprise. “What is that? Something 
new to jump rope with?” 

“Oh, no,” answered Baby Bunty with a smile. 
“A scooter is a little two-wheeler roller skate 
wagon. It has wheels on it, and a place for you 
to stand with your feet and a place to hold on 
by your paws. You get on the scooter, give your- 
self a little push, and away you scoot as fast as 
82 


Uncle Wiggily and Bunty’s Scooter 83 


anything! I want a scooter, Uncle Wiggily. All 
the other animal boys and girls have ’em!” 

“Then you shall have one, too!” cried Mr. 
Longears. “Come on. Baby Bunty, we’ll go 
down to the fifteen and sixteen cent store and 
get you a scooter !” 

“Oh, joy!” said Baby Bunty, clapping her 
paws, and trying to make her pink nose twinkle 
like Uncle Wiggily’s. But she didn’t do it very 
well, being so small. 

A little later the rabbit gentleman and the 
little girl, who had been found in a hollow stump, 
were on their way through the woods to the fif- 
teen and sixteen cent bam where they sold 
scooters. 

“Give me the best one you have for Baby 
Bunty,” ordered Uncle Wiggily, and it was 
given him. 

“Oh, may I ride home on it?” asked Baby 
Bunty, when they were on the smooth wood- 
land path once more. 

“Why, yes, if you know how,” said Uncle 
Wiggily. 

“Oh, all you have to do with a scooter,” spoke 
Baby Bunty, “is to get on with your hind paws, 
hold fast to the handle with your front paws, 
give yourself a push and away you scoot!” 

“Let me see you try it,” said Uncle Wiggily. 


84 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


“Maybe you’d better go first,” said Baby 
Bunty. 

“Oh, no, indeed!” laughed her uncle. “I’m 
too old and stiff, and my rheumatism makes me 
feel too funny to ride on a scooter. Go ahead. 
Baby Bunty.” 

Baby Bunty got on the foot-part of the 
scooter. She held tightly with her front paws, 
and gave herself a push with one hind paw. 
Along went the scooter, but alas! Likewise 
a-lack-a-day! Baby Bunty must have steered 
the wrong way, for bunk! into a tree she ran. 

“Oh, did you hurt yourself?” asked Uncle 
Wiggily, as he ran to help her. 

“Oh, no!” laughed the little rabbit girl. “It’s 
fun when I get so I know how to do it!” 

Off she started once more, but this time she 
ran into a stump and bunked her nose. 

“Are you hurt?” asked Uncle Wiggily. 

“No — no,” said Bimty bravely. “But I must 
be more careful.” 

The next time she steered very straight, but 
she sent the scooter right into a mud puddle and 
the mud splashed on Uncle Wiggily ’s tall silk 
hat. But, as the hat was black, the mud spots 
do not show very plainly. 

“Oh, dear!” sighed Baby Bunty. “I don’t 
believe I’ll ever learn how to ride my scooter. 
I should have bought roller skates. Don’t you 


Uncle Wiggily and Bunty’s Scooter 85 


want to ride and show me how. Uncle Wiggily?” 

“Dear me!” said the rabbit gentleman, unpre- 
tentious like. “Do you think, at my age, I 
could?” 

“Of course!” said Baby Bunty. 

“I am lame and stiff and have the rheuma- 
tism,” said Uncle Wiggily, “but I’ll try any- 
thing once. Let me see that scooter, Bunty!” 

Uncle Wiggily got on with his hind paws. 
He took hold with his front paws and he gave 
himself a push. And, just as it would happen, 
the scooter was then at the top of a hill. Down 
this hill went the funny little two- wheeled wagon, 
with Uncle Wiggily on it. 

“Stop! Oh, stop!” begged Mr. Longears, as 
he saw what was before him. “I didn’t know this 
was down hill! Stop!” 

But it was too late to stop! Down he went, 
faster and faster. And the scooter traveled so 
quickly that it rolled straight along and didn’t 
go from side to side, or bunk into anything. 

“Oh, how wonderfully well Uncle Wiggily 
rides!” said Baby Bunty at the top of the hill, 
as she began to hop down. 

And just then, at the bottom of the hill, the 
scooter, with Uncle Wiggily on it, struck a 
stump. Up in the air went the rabbit gentle- 
man, and down he came with a thump. But he 
landed on a bed of soft moss and wasn’t hurt 


86 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


a bit. The scooter came down with a bump 
beside him. Uncle Wiggily looked around, 
dazed like. Baby Bunty came hopping down 
the hill. 

“Oh, Uncle Wiggily!” she cried. “That was 
wonderful! But I didn’t know that was the 
way to get off a scooter.” 

“It isn’t,” said Mr. Longears. “And don’t 
you try that way, either. But I enjoyed my 
ride. I’m not as stiff as I was, but I may be 
more so tomorrow. Now I’ll give you some 
lessons, Baby Bunty.” 

The little rabbit girl soon learned to ride her 
scooter, but not down hill, and she had lots of 
fun. And if the clock doeesn’t strike the dinner 
bell and make the gas stove think it’s time for 
supper before breakfast. I’ll tell you next about 
Uncle Wiggily and the flowers. 


STORY XVII 


UNCLE WIGGLY AND THE FLOWERS 

Uncle Wiggily Longears, the bunny rabbit 
gentleman, was hopping through the woods one 
day, wondering what Nurse Jane Fuzzy Wuzzy 
would have for his dinner in the hollow stump 
bungalow, when, suddenly, Mr. Longears heard 
some one call: 

“Uncle Wiggily! Uncle Wiggily! Wait for 
me! Oh, wait for me!” 

Quickly the rabbit gentleman turned around, 
and lowered his long ears, so they would not 
stick up over the tops of the bushes. 

“I am not sure, as yet, whether I want to 
wait for whoever this is, or not,” said Uncle 
Wiggily, cautious like and reserved. “If it’s the 
Pipsisewah, or the Skuddlemagoon, I certainly 
don’t want them to see me, or the see the souse 
on my ears.” 

Again the voice cried: 

“Oh, Uncle Wiggily! Wait for me! Where 
are you. I saw you a moment ago, but now I 
can’t see you! Please wait for mee!” 

“Why, that’s Baby Bunty!” exclaimed Uncle 
Wiggily, with a joyful twinkle of his pink nose. 

87 


SS Uncle Wiggily and Baby Biinty 


‘‘My dear little baby rabbit, who was found in 
a stump ! Of course I’ll wait for her.” 

Then Uncle Wiggily let his ears flop up, so 
they could be seen over the bushes, and the little 
rabbit girl cried: 

“Oh, now I can see you! Wait a minute and 
I’ll hop to where you are.” 

Uncle Wiggily sat on a stump and waited. 
Pretty soon Baby Bunty came hopping along 
the woodland path. 

“My goodness me, sakes alive and some pea- 
nut butter cakes!” cried the rabbit gentleman. 
“What is that yellow stuflp on your paws, Baby 
Bunty?” 

“Those are yellow flowers,” said Baby Bunty. 
“I picked both my paws full of them, and I’m 
going to give them to Nurse Jane.” 

“Yellow flowers, eh?” laughed Uncle Wig- 
gily. “Oh, so they are!” he went on, as he 
brushed some cobwebs off his glasses. “It is very 
kind of you to gather them for Nurse Jane.” 

“I’m glad you think so,” spoke Baby Bunty. 
“Have a smell. Uncle Wiggily!” and she held 
her bouquet of yellow blossoms under the pink, 
twinkling nose of Uncle Wiggily. 

“Oh, Baby Bunty, don’t!” begged Uncle Wig- 
gily, drawing back. “Oh, dear me! A-ker-choo. 
Ker-snitzio! Bushwah! Bur-r-r-r!” and he 
sneezed eleven-sixteen times. 


Uncle Wiggily and the Flowers 80 


‘‘Oh! Are you catching cold, Uncle Wig- 
gily?” asked Baby Bnuty. 

‘‘No,” answered the old rabbit gentleman. 
“It’s just the flowers. They have some yellow 
dust on them, and the petals are so ticklish that, 
when they touched my nose, they made me 
sneeze. I like your flowers. Baby Bunty, and 
so will Nurse Jane, but please don’t hold them 
so close to my nose again.” 

“I won’t,” promised the little rabbit girl. 
“Now we’ll have a nice game of tag! Come on, 
chase me!” and away she hopped through the 
woods. 

“Hi, there! Come back!” cried Uncle Wig- 
gily. “Don’t run so fast. Baby Bunty! You 
may get lost or the Pipsisewah may catch you. 
Come back!” 

“No, you chase me! Come on, tag me!” cried 
Baby Bunty. 

“Oh, dear, I suppose I’ll have to,” spoke 
Uncle Wiggily, with a sort of sighing groan. 
“But I’m so old and stiff -like ” 

But still he felt he must hop on to see that 
no harm came to Baby Bunty. And that little 
rabbit girl certainly led the old gentleman rab- 
bit a long chase. 

On tlirough the woods hopped Baby Bunty, 
carrying her yellow flowers, and after her 
hopped Uncle Wiggily. All of a sudden Mr. 


90 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


Longears, looking ahead, saw the bad old Pip- 
sisewah jump out from behind a stump, and 
make a grab for Baby Bunty! 

“Oh, dear me, and some fire engine rice pud- 
ding!” cried Uncle Wiggily. “I should have 
run faster after Baby Bunty to save her from 
the Pipsisewah. Yet, even if I were there, what 
could I do? And what can she do? Oh, this 
is too bad!” 

Then, as he watched, he suddenly saw brave 
Baby Bunty thrust her bouquet of yellow flow- 
ers into the very face of the Pipsisewah. Right 
under his nose the little rabbit girl held the 
fuzzy blossoms, and then the Pip quickly turned 
a backward somersault and a forward pepper- 
sault and he went: 

“Ker-choo ! A-ker-choo-choo ! Kersnoozio- 

zoozium!” 

And he sneezed so hard that he sneezed him- 
self away up over the trees, and far enough off 
so he couldn’t hurt Uncle Wiggily or Baby 
Bunty.” 

“Well, that’s the time the fuzzy, sneezy flow- 
ers came in useful!” said Uncle Wiggily. 

Then he hopped up to Baby Bunty and found 
her smiling. 

“Now do you like my flowers?” she asked. 

“Yes,” answered Uncle Wiggily, “I do. And 
I’ll carry one of the bouquets for you.” But he 


Uncle Wiggily and the Flowers 91 


was careful to hold it away from his pink, 
twinkling nose, as he didn’t want to sneeze as 
hard as the Pipsisewah had done. 

So, everything came out all right, and if the 
fried egg doesn’t go to sleep on the sofa cushion 
and make the rocking chair think it’s a yellow 
rose. I’ll tell you next about Uncle Wiggily and 
the white birch. 


STORY XVIII 


UNCLE WIGGILY AND THE WHITE BIRCH 

Where is Baby Bunty this morning?” asked 
Uncle Wiggily Longears, the bunny rabbit gen- 
tleman, as he came downstairs to a rather late 
breakfast in his hollow stmnp bungalow. 

“Do you want her to make you chase her, and 
play tag, or gather more yellow flowers to give 
the Pipsisewah a sneeze?” asked Nurse Jane 
Fuzzy Wuzz}^ the muskrat lady housekeeper, 
as she poured some carrot gravy over Uncle 
Wiggily ’s lettuce pancakes. 

“Oh, indeed, I don’t want Baby Bunty for 
anything like that,” spoke Mr. Longears. “I 
was just thinking, if she were off playing some- 
where, I could rest and not have to hop about 
like a jumping Jack walking a tight rope.” 

“Oh, Baby Bunty is good for you!” laughed 
Nurse Jane. “Still, you needn’t worry now. She 
is out of the way. She has gone over to play 
with Beckie Stubtail, the little girl bear, and she 
is going to stay to supper. Baby Bunty doesn’t 
want to come home until after dark, and she told 
me to ask you to go after her.” 

“I will,” said Uncle Wiggily. “Hurray! 

92 


Uncle Wiggily and the White Birch 9B 


Much as I love Baby Bunty, I like to be quiet, 
sometimes. Now I can eat my breakfast and 
have a little sleep.” 

So Uncle Wiggily did. In the afternoon he 
took a hop through the woods and had a little 
adventure with a frog lady. She was Mrs. No- 
Tail, the mother of Bully and Bawly, and Mrs. 
No-Tail fell into a pile of dry dust. Being fond 
of water, she didn’t like being dry, but she might 
never have gotten out of the dust if Uncle Wig- 
gily had not helped her. 

Then, after supper, Mr. Longears said to 
Nurse Jane: 

‘‘Now I will go over to Beckie Stubtail’s 
house and get Baby Bunty. She won’t be 
afraid to come home through the dark woods if 
I am with her.” 

“No,” spoke Nurse Jane, “I hardly believe 
she will. But be very careful coming through 
the dark woods. Uncle Wiggily. The Pipsis- 
ewah may be hiding there waiting for you.” 

“I’ll be careful!” promised the bunny rabbit. 
“But is there any favor I could do for you when 
I go to bring home Baby Bunty?” 

“Yes,” replied Nurse Jane, “there is. If you 
have time, after you stop at the Stubtail house 
for our little rabbit girl, I wish you’d step over 
to Mrs. Wibblewobble’s, the duck lady. She 
has a bag of sugar for me. It’s three pounds 


94 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


she is giving me back for some she borrowed 
of me to make cornmeal cakes.” 

“I’ll stop at Mrs. Wibblewobble’s and get the 
sugar, and also bring Baby Bunty home,” said 
Uncle Wiggily. 

Then he hopped off through the woods. It 
was getting dark, but Uncle Wiggily didn’t care 
about that. Baby Bunty might, but he never 
would. 

Soon the rabbit gentleman was at the home 
of Beckie Stubtail, the little bear girl. As he 
drew near he heard merry shouts and laughter. 

“The children are having a good time,” 
thought Uncle Wiggily, and so they were. 
When they knew he was there. Baby Bunty 
wanted him to come in and play some games. 
But Mr. Longears said: 

“No, Baby Bunty! It is getting late, and 1 
have to stop at Mrs. Wibblewobble’s to get the 
sugar for Nurse Jane. You may come over 
again some other time.” 

So, Baby Bunty said good night to Beckie 
Stubtail, and then the little rabbit girl and 
Uncle Wiggily started back through the dark 
woods. 

“Aren’t you afraid?” asked Baby Bunty. 

“Not a bit!” laughed Mr. Longears. He 
noticed that Bunty hopped close to his side, and 


Uncle Wiggily and the White Birch 95 


did not run on ahead and want him to chase 
her, as she often did. 

It did not take Uncle Wiggily and Baby 
Bunty long to get to the duck house, and there 
Mrs. Wibblewobble had the sugar wrapped up 
in a paper bag for them. Then, once more, Mr. 
Longears and Bunty started through the dark 
woods. 

“Oh, what’s that?” suddenly asked the little 
rabbit girl, stopping and pointing ahead. 

“Nothing but an old stump,” said Uncle Wig- 
gily. “Come on!” They went along a little far- 
ther, and Baby Bunty all of a sudden cried: 

“Oh, look! There’s a giant!” 

“Nonsense!” laughed Uncle Wiggily. That’s 
only a big rock that looks like a giant. Hop 
along!” 

They hopped along a little farther, and, all 
at once. Baby Bunty gave a backward jump, 
bunked into Uncle Wiggily so hard that she 
burst the paper bag, letting the sugar spill out, 
and she cried: 

“Oh, what’s that big, tall, white thing waving 
its arms at us on the path? Oh, Uncle Wiggily! 
What is it? What is it?” 

Baby Bunty snuggled close up against the 
rabbit gentleman. Uncle Wiggily looked once, 
he looked twice and he looked three times at the 
white thing. Truly it did seem to be waving its 


96 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


arms in the dark. Then Uncle Wiggily laughed. 

“Why, that is only a white birch-bark tree, 
Baby Bunty,” he said “You mustn’t be afraid 
of a white birch tree. And I’m glad we came 
to this one. With some of the loose bark I can 
make a new bag for the sugar. And I’ll be glad 
to do it, for the sugar is running down my leg 
and it tickles like sand at the seashore.” 

So Uncle Wiggily made a bag from the white 
birch bark, put the sugar in it, and he and Baby 
Bunty were soon safe in the hollow stump bun- 
galow. And if the cough drop doesn’t fall off 
toadstool and tickle rice pudding under the chin 
when they’re in the moving pictures. I’ll tell you 
next about Uncle Wiggily and the little pond. 


STORY XIX 


UNCLE WIGGILY AND THE LITTLE POND 

Uncle Wiggily Longears, the bunny rabbit 
gentleman, was hopping along through Wood- 
land near the Orange Ice Mountains, not far 
from Asbury Grove, where he had built his hol- 
low stump bungalow. Mr. Longears was look- 
ing first on one side of the path and then on 
the other with his pink, twinkling nose. 

I mean Uncle Wiggily had his pink nose with 
him ; I don’t mean he was looking with it. Gra- 
cious, no! He looked with his eyes. 

“Hello, Uncle Wiggily! Are you looking for 
an adventure?” asked Johnnie Bushytail, the 
squirrel boy, as he scampered up a hickory tree 
to see if any nuts were growing yet. But it was 
too early. 

“No, I’m not exactly looking for an adven- 
ture,” spoke the bunny gentleman. “I want to 
find Baby Bunty, the little rabbit girl who used 
to live in a hollow stump.” 

“Do you want her to chase you and play tag?” 
asked Johnnie. 

“Indeed, I do not!” cried Uncle Wiggily. 
“Baby Bunty is too lively for me! She says she 
97 


98 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


makes me chase her so I won’t get old and stiff. 
But it’s fun to be sort of restful like once in a 
while. Now I’m looking for Baby Bunty 
because Nurse Jane wants her to come and 
have her paws and face washed for supper. 
Have you seen her?” 

“Do you mean Nurse Jane or Baby Bunty?” 
asked the squirrel boy, sort of joking like and 
comical. 

“Baby Bunty, of course!” answered Uncle 
Wiggily. “I know where Nurse Jane is. She’s 
baking a strawberry longcake in my hollow 
stump bungalow. But if you haven’t seen Baby 
Bunty I must hop along and look in other 
places.” 

So Uncle Wiggily hopped along, and pretty 
soon he came to the shore of a large pond. On 
one bank of the pond were growing a number 
of tall plants, with thick, green leaves. 

“Ha! Those are nice plants,” said Uncle 
Wiggily. “Perhaps they may have seen Baby 
Bunty pass this way.” 

So, understanding the language of flowers, 
which is about the same as that which is talked 
by the leaves and vines. Uncle Wiggily asked 
the green plants if they had seen the little rab- 
bit girl. 

“No,” answered one large plant, “we haven’t 
seen Baby Bunty. “We have been so busy try- 


Uncle Wiggily and the Lilly Pond 99 


ing to shake off a lot of bad, red, biting bugs, 
on our stalks and leaves, that we haven’t had a 
chance to look for any one. We wish we could 
drive the bugs away.” 

“I can do that,” kindly offered Uncle Wig- 
gily. ‘‘I will drive away the red bugs that are 
biting your thick, green, glossy leaves. I’ll 
knock them off with my red, white and blue 
striped rheumatism crutch.” 

“Please do!” begged the plants growing on 
the edge of the big pond. 

So Uncle Wiggily drove away the biting bugs 
by tapping on the green, thick-leaved plants 
with his crutch, and the plants thanked the rab- 
bit gentleman very much. 

“If we can ever do you or any of your friends 
a favor we shall be glad to,” they said. 

Uncle Wiggily hardly thought a plant could 
ever do you a favor, but just you wait and see. 
On and on through the woods hopped the rab- 
bit gentleman, until pretty soon he came to a 
cute little shady dingly dell, and there was Baby 
Bunty lying on the grass fast asleep. In one 
paw was her wooden doll — Sarah J ane Sassafras 
Ricepudding. 

“Oh, Bunty! Wake up!” cried Uncle Wig- 
gily. “Nurse Jane wants you to come home! 
It’s nearly supper time!” 

Baby Bunty awakened with a start, rubbed 


100 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


her eyes, and then, holding her doll, Matilda 
Arabella Flapdoodle, in one paw, the little rab- 
bit girl took hold of Uncle Wiggily’s coat tail 
and back to the hollow stump bungalow they 
started. 

JThey had not gone very far, and they were 
hopping toward the big pond of water, when, 
all of a sudden, out from behind a stump popped 
the bad old Skuddlemagoon. 

‘Uh, ho! Now I have you!” cried the Skud- 
dlemagoon. 

Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty ran as fast 
as they could. So did the Skuddlemagoon. 
Pretty soon Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 
came to the big pond. 

‘‘Oh, if only this pond were little now,” 
sighed Uncle Wiggily, “we could jump across 
it.” 

“What good would that do?” asked Baby 
Bunty. 

“Why, once on the other side, we would be 
safe from the Skuddlemagoon,” answered Uncle 
Wiggily. “The policeman dog lives on the other 
side of this pond. But, as it is now, it is too 
big for us to jump across, and if we have to run 
all the way aroimd it the bad chap may catch us.” 

And then, just as true as I’m telling you, all 
of a sudden the big pond began to shrink up. It 
shut its banks close together and became so little 


Uncle Wiggily and the Lilly Pond 101 


that Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty could 
easily jump across without getting wet. 

All the way across the pond they jumped, 
and, when they were safe on the other side, the 
little pond suddenly stretched into a big one 
again and it was so large that the Skuddlema- 
goon couldn’t jump over. 

''Oh, we’re safe. Uncle Wiggily!” cried Bunty. 
"We’re safe! But what made the big pond get 
little and then grow big again?” 

"I don’t know,” answered Mr. Longears. 

Then some voices spoke: "We made the big 
pond get little for you,” said the green stalks 
and leaves on the bank. "We shrank and also 
stretched the pond for you. We are rubbe'r 
plants, you know, and rubber can stretch and 
shrink.” 

That’s just how it happened. Weren’t those 
stretchy rubber plants good to Baby Bunty and 
Mr. Longears? And if the bluebell flower 
doesn’t ring so late in the morning that the alarm 
clock gets late for school, and can’t have any 
sawdust candy for recess. I’ll tell you next about 
Uncle Wiggily and the funny stump. 


STORY XX 


UNCLE WIGGILY AND THE FUNNY STUMP 

‘‘Good-by, Uncle Wiggily! Good-by!’’ called 
Baby Bunty to Mr. Longears, the rabbit gentle- 
man, one morning, as he stood on the front porch 
of his hollow stump bungalow. 

“What’s that? ‘Good-by?’ Why, you aren’t 
going to leave me; are you?” cried Uncle Wig- 
gily. “Are you going to leave me after I found 
you in the woods, and took care of you and — and 
all that!” 

“Oh, but you say I make you chase me and 
play tag, and that I won’t let you sit around 
and get stiff and old and all the like of that! 
I’d better go away,” and really it looked as 
though Baby Bunty were going away, for she 
had a little bundle in one paw. 

“Oh, don’t go away!” begged Uncle Wiggily. 
“I don’t mind chasing you, and I was only fool- 
ing about you making me get old and stiff.” 

“And I was only fooling about going away!” 
laughed Baby Bunty. “I’m only going to take 
my painting lesson from Mother Nature. She 
knows how to color the flowers red, blue and 
golden, and she is giving me painting lessons. 

102 


Uncle Wiggily and the Funny Stump 103 


My paints are in this bundle. When I finish 
learning how to make a blue sky turn pink I’ll 
come back to you.” 

“Please do!” cried Uncle Wiggily. “I shall 
miss you.” 

“Then, in an hour or so, if you walk through 
the woods you may meet me coming home from 
my painting lesson,” spoke Bunty. 

“I will!” promised Uncle Wiggily. Then 
Baby Bunty hopped on with her box of colors, 
and Mr. Longears went to see Grandfather 
Goosey Gander. 

“What do you s’pose Baby Bunty can paint?” 
asked Grandpa Goosey, when Uncle Wiggily 
had told about the little rabbit girl learning how 
to make a green leaf look red. 

“I don’t know what she can paint, but she is 
a smart little thing,” said Mr. Longears. “It 
would be hard to find her equal if you hopped or 
waddled for one whole day and part of another.” 

“I believe you!” quacked Grandpa Goosey 
Gander. 

Pretty soon it was time for Uncle Wiggily to 
start hopping along the woodland path to meet 
Baby Bunty, for soon she would be leaving 
Mother Nature’s studio, where the little rabbit 
girl took her lessons. 

“I must get Baby Bunty to give my red, 
white and blue striped barber pole rheumatism 


104 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


crutch a new coat of paint,” thought Uncle 
Wiggily, as he hopped along. “And I wonder 
just where I shall meet her!” 

All of a sudden he heard a joyful sound. 

“Hi, there, Uncle Wiggily! Here I ami 
Whoop-de-doodle-woodle !” and along hopped 
Baby Bunty. There was a smudge of red 
paint of one ear, a dab of blue paint on her left 
paw and a dribble of yellow paint on her hair 
ribbon. 

“I’ve been having my painting lessons,” she 
said to Uncle Wiggily. 

“I see you have!” he agreed, with a laugh. 
“Well, we’ll hop home now, and see what Niu’se 
Jane Fuzzy Wuzzy has for supper. 

Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty were hop- 
ping along, when, all of a sudden, out from 
under a pile of dried grass jumped the bad old 
Magoosielum. The Magoosielum is worse than 
either the Pipsisewah or the Skuddlemagoon. 

“Ah, ah! I’m in luck today!” cried tbe 
Magoosielum. “A rabbit gentleman and a rab- 
bit girl! Let me see, whose souse shall I eat first? 
I guess I’ll take yours. Uncle Wiggily.” 

With that the Magoolielum let go of Baby 
Bunty, well knowing she would not run away 
without Uncle Wiggily. Then the Magoosielum 
began looking at the rabbit gentleman’s ears to 
see where the best place would be to begin eating 


Uncle Wiggily and the Funny Stump 105 


souse. For that it what souse is — pickled ears 
of nice rabbits. 

“Well, I’ll take some left ear souse first,” said 
the Magoosielum, and he was just starting to do 
this, and Uncle Wiggily didn’t know what to do. 
The rabbit gentleman saw Baby Bunty open her 
paint box. 

“That will not help any,” sadly thought Uncle 
Wiggily. “The only thing that will drive away 
a Magoosielum is pineapple cheese, and Baby 
Bunty has none of that.” 

Then the bad animal stood in front of Uncle 
Wiggily picking out a good place to begin nib- 
bling the souse, so Mr. Longears couldn’t see 
what Bunty was doing with the paint box. All 
he could see was that she was near a funny, old, 
gnarled and fire-blackened stump. 

But, all of a sudden. Baby Bunty cried: 

“Look but now, you bad old Magoosielum. 
Look out, or my friend, the Snippy- Snappy, will 
get you!” 

And, as true as I’m telling you, there stood 
what seemed to be a little, short, squatty animal, 
with a big red mouth, a green nose, one yellow 
eye and one pink eye, one brown cheek and one 
purple one, and his teeth. Oh, his teeth were all 
sorts of colors, some even being Skilligimink 
shade 1 

“Oh, wow! Oh, this is terrible!” howled the 


106 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


bad Magoosielum. “D.on’t let that Snippy- 
Snappy get me! I won’t hurt you, Uncle Wig- 
gily!” And away ran the bad chap, not hurting 
Mr. Longear nor Bunty at all. 

‘‘But won’t the Snippy- Snappy get my souse?” 
asked Mr. Longears, when he saw that the un- 
pleasant creature was gone. “Aren’t we in 
danger from the Snippy- Snappy?” 

“Of course not!” laughed Bunty. “I just 
made the Snippy- Snappy on the outside of the 
funny old stump, with my colored paints. I 
painted the Snippy- Snappy, Uncle Wiggily, to 
scare the Magoosielum.” 

“And right well you scared him,” spoke the 
bunny. “You surely are learning to paint, 
Bimty.” And if the safety pin doesn’t slide off 
the cushion and try to sprinkle soapsuds in the 
eye of the needle. I’ll tell you next about Uncle 
Wiggily and the queer log. 


STORY XXI 


UNCLE WIGGILY AND THE QUEER LOG 

“Where’s Uncle Wiggily? Where’s Uncle 
Wiggily?” asked Baby Bunty, the little rabbit 
girl, of Nurse Jane Fuzzy Wuzzy, one morning. 
“Where is he?” 

“Why, Uncle Wiggily has gone to the store 
for me,” answered the muskrat lady housekeeper 
of the hollow stump bungalow. “He has gone 
to get me some molasses !” 

“Oh, dear!” sighed Baby Bunty, the little rab- 
bit girl, who had been found in a hollow stump. 

“Why, whatever is the matter?” asked Nurse 
Jane, who had a dab of flour on her nose. And 
whenever the muskrat lady had a dab of flour 
on her nose you could be sure that she was mak- 
ing a pie. “Don’t you like molasses cake, 
Bunty?” Miss Fuzzy Wuzzy asked. 

“Oh, yes! Have you any?” Baby Bunty 
wanted to know. 

“I’ll make one as soon as Uncle Wiggily 
comes backs with the jug of molasses,” went 
on Nurse Jane. “But why did you say ‘Oh, 
dear!’ in such a doleful voice?” 

“Because I wished Uncle Wiggily were here 
107 


108 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


to chase me, or play tag, or something! I’m 
so afraid he’ll get old and stiff.” 

“Well, why don’t you hop off in the woods 
and meet him?” asked Nurse Jane of the lively 
little rabbit girl Baby Bunty could hardly ever 
keep still. “If you go to meet him you’ll see 
him hopping along with the molasses jug,” went 
on the muskrat lady, “and then he’ll chase you, 
or play tag or let you help him carry the sweet 
stuff I’m going to put in a cake.” 

“I’ll do that,” said Baby Bunty, and away 
she hopped with her rubber doll named Beat- 
rice Ethelmore Lemonsqueezer. 

As she was hopping through the woods to 
meet Uncle Wiggily, all of a sudden Baby 
Bunty heard, near a little spring of water, a 
sad voice crying: 

“Oh, I’m so wet! Oh, if some one would only 
help me out of the water!” 

“Some one is drowning!” said Baby Bunty. 
“I wonder if I could save them?” 

On a bed of soft, green moss, she put her 
wax doll, Sarah Ann Belinda Washbasin, and 
hurried to the side of the little spring. There 
Baby Bunty saw a poor honey bee splashing in 
the water. 

“I’ll save you!” kindly said the little rabbit 
girl. With a long stick she fished the half- 


Uncle Wiggily and the Queer Log 109 


drowned bee out of the pool, and placed him on 
a leaf in the sun where his wings could dry. 

“Thank you for saving me,” buzzed the bee, 
when he had shaken off some of the water. “I 
shall be glad to do you a favor, if I may. Do 
you want me to make you some honey?” 

“Oh, thank you, no ; not now,” answered Baby 
Bunty. “Uncle Wiggily is bringing home the 
molasses jug. But some other time we may 
want your honey.” 

“Any time you do I’ll give you some,” buzzed 
the bee. Then he flew away to look for more 
honey flowers. Baby Bunty was glad she had 
saved the bee, which a big dragon fly had knocked 
into the spring of water. 

On and on through the woods hopped Baby 
Bmity, and pretty soon she saw Uncle Wiggily 
coming toward her, with the molasses jug on 
his paw. 

“Oh, Uncle Wiggily!” cried the little rabbit 
girl. “I’m so glad I met you. Now I’ll help 
you carry the molasses jug and when we get 
home you’ll chase me, and play tag; won’t you?” 

“Oh, yes, I guess so,” answered Mr. Longears. 

“It will keep you from getting old and stiff, 
you know,” said Baby Bunty sweetly, as she 
took hold of one side of the molasses jug. 

She and Uncle Wiggily hopped on, but, all 


110 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


of a sudden, out from behind a bush jumped 
the bad old fox. 

“Oh, ho!’’ cried the fox. “This time I hare 
you!” 

He made a grab for Uncle Wiggily and 
Bunty, but they were too quick for him. 

“Rim, Bunty! Run!” cried Mr. Longears. 
[And he ran and hopped, and so did Bunty, and 
they got away from the fox. But, alas, they 
dropped the molasses jug and they didn’t dare 
stop to pick it up, or go back after it. 

“Oh, dear! What shall I do?” sighed Uncle 
Wiggily. “I have lost the molasses and jug, 
and Nurse Jane will be so disappointed! Oh, 
dear!” and he sat down on a queer log, that had 
a hole in each end, and warts like a toad all 
over it. 

“It is too bad,” said Baby Bunty. 

“What is too bad?” asked a gentle, little voice, 
and out of one end of the queer log flew the 
very same honey bee that Baby Bunty had saved 
from the spring. “What is too bad?” asked 
the bee. 

“The fox chased us and I lost the molasses 
jug,” said Uncle Wiggily. 

“Oh, ho! Don’t let that worry you!” buzzed 
the bee. “Inside this queer log I and many 
other bees have a lot of flower honey. It is as 
sweet as molasses, and I’ll give you all you want. 


Uncle Wiggily and the Queer Log 111 


Here, make a box of some white birch bark from 
this tree, and take Nurse Jane a lot of our 
honey.” 

“Oh, that will be just fine!” cried Uncle 
Wiggily. “Nurse Jane can make honey cakes!” 
And the muskrat lady did. So you see losing 
the molasses jug didn’t so much matter after 
all. And if the man in the moon doesn’t want 
to come and live in our house and make the lady 
bug move into the garage, I’ll tell you next 
about Uncle Wiggily and the lightning bug. 


STORY XXII 


XJNCLE WIGGILY AND THE LIGHTNING BUG 

“Tag! You’re it!” cried Baby Bunty, the 
little rabbit girl, one morning, as she ran around 
on the porch of the hollow stump bungalow and 
tapped Uncle Wiggily on his tall silk hat with 
her paw. 

“Oh, dear! Now I suppose I’ve got to chase 
you!” exclaimed the rabbit gentleman, as he 
started his pink nose to twinkling. “And I’m 
so stiff I can hardly run this morning!” 

But Mr. Longears chased the little rabbit 
girl, and he really felt better after a lively race 
around the hollow stump bungalow, so that some 
of his stiffness was gone as he set forth, a little 
later, to hop through the woods with Bunty. 

“What sort of an adventure do you think we’ll 
have today. Uncle Wiggily?” asked Baby 
Bunty, as she hopped along beside the rabbit 
gentleman. 

“Oh, you never can tell,” he answered. “I 
suppose the skillery-scalery alligator, or the bad 
old Pipsisewah will come along and ” 

Hardly had Uncle Wiggily said these few 
112 


Uncle Wiggily and the Lightning Bug 113 


words than he and Baby Bunty heard a sad 
little voice saying: 

“Oh, dear! Oh, dear, me! Here I’m caught 
in a sassafras tree!” 

“Who’s that?” asked Baby Bunty. 

“I don’t know who it is, but I know who it 
isn’t!” exclaimed Uncle Wiggily. 

“Then who isn’t it?” asked Baby Bunty. 

“It isn’t the Pipsisewah,” spoke the rabbit 
gentleman. “He never uses poetry, though he 
did eat some of your sugary frosted chocolate 
cake the other day. But I must see who this is. 
They may need help.” 

“Indeed I do!” went on the sad little voice, 

“Who are you?” asked Uncle Wiggily. 

“A lightning bug,” was the answer. “Some 
persons call us fireflies, and that’s a good name, 
too. But I am caught fast by my legs in the 
sticky gum on this sassafras tree, and I can’t 
get loose.” 

“I’ll help you,” said Uncle Wiggily. 

“So will I,” added Baby Bunty. 

She and Uncle Wiggily looked, and they saw 
a little brown and drab bug on the branch of 
a sassafras tree not far away. 

“You don’t look like a lightning bug,” said 
Baby Bunty. “You don’t shine at all.” 

“I only shine in the dark,” said the bug. 

“Yes, that is true; many times I have seen 


114 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


you, or your friends,” admitted Uncle Wiggily. 
Then he gently set the firefly free from the 
sticky gum, and the little bug flew away. But 
before it left it said: 

‘Tf ever I can help you, or Baby Bunty, I 
shall be most glad to do so. Uncle Wiggily.” 

“Oh, pray, don’t mention it,” spoke the rabbit 
gentleman, diffident-like and shy. 

Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty traveled on 
and on over the fields and through the woods, 
looking for an adventure, but they could not 
seem to find any, unless you call helping the 
lightning bug an adventure. 

And pretty soon it began to get dark, for 
Uncle Wiggily had stayed out later than he 
meant to. 

“Oh, dear!” sighed Baby Bimty. “Hadn’t 
we better get back to your hollow stump. Uncle 
Wiggily?” 

“Yes, I think so,” said the rabbit gentleman. 
But when he tried to find the path that led to 
home and Nurse Jane he could not. It was 
too dark. 

“Oh, we are lost in the woods and the bad 
Pipsisewah will get us,” cried Baby Bunty. 

“Hush!” said Uncle Wiggily. “It will be all 
right. I’ll light a fire here on this big stone. 
The Pipsisewah, or no other wild animal, will 
come where there is a fire!” 







Uncle Wiggily and the Lightning Bug 115 


“Then please light one,” begged Baby Bunty. 

But when Uncle Wiggily tried to make the 
fire he found he had no matches. And then, 
all of a sudden, there was heard a crackling 
and rustling in the bushes. . 

“Oh, the Pipsisewah is coming!” cried Baby 
Bunty. 

“He’d soon go away if I could make these 
sticks burn!” said Uncle Wiggily, trying again 
to find a match, but he could not. 

The Pipsisewah came nearer and nearer, 
howling for rabbit-ear souse. And then, all of 
a sudden, a little bright and shining light flew 
through the air, and came down on the flat 
stone where Uncle Wiggily had placed the sticks 
to make a fire. And, in another moment ten 
thousand other little points of light come flying 
along. They dropped down among the dry 
sticks and branches at the spot where Uncle 
Wiggily had tried to make the blaze until it 
looked as if the whole place were burning. 

“Oh, look!” cried Baby Bunty. “We have 
a bonfire !” 

And the Pipsisewah, seeing the bright light, 
gave a grumble and growl and quickly sneaked 
away. 

“Just my luck!” he said. “I thought I’d have 
a bit of souse, but I don’t even dare go near 
the fire!” 


Jl6 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


And Uncle Wiggily, looking among the sticks, 
said: 

“This isn’t burning fire at all; it’s just a lot 
of lightning bugs crawling on the pieces of 
wood.” 

“Yes, that’s what we are,” said a voice. “I 
am the lightning bug you saved from the sticky 
gum, and these are my cousins and my sisters 
and my aunts.” 

“And you saved us from the Pipsisewah!” 
said Uncle Wiggily, and so the lightning bugs 
had. Then the firefly bugs flew on ahead, light- 
ing the path to the hollow stump bungalow for 
the bunnies, and all was well. 

And if the loaf of bread doesn’t hide in the 
flower pot when the rice pudding wants it to 
help catch the raisins for a pie. I’ll tell you next 
about Uncle Wiggily and the roses. 


STORY XXIII 


UNCLE WIGGILY AND THE EOSES 

“Dear me!” exclaimed Nurse Jane Fuzzy 
Wuzzy one day, as she walked down to the end 
of her garden near the hollow stump bungalow. 
“This is too bad!” 

“What’s the matter now?” asked Uncle Wig- 
gily Longears. “Have Jackie and Peetie Bow 
Wow, those two little puppy dog boys, been 
digging up your seeds?” 

“No,” answered the muskrat lady housekeeper 
to the bunny rabbit gentleman, “not quite that^ 
But something has been eating my lovely roses, 
And I wanted to keep them nice to send a bou-' 
quet to Grandpa Goosey Gander.” 

“Ha! Some one has been eating yomr roses 
have they. Nurse Jane?” exclaimed Uncle Wig- 
gily, animosity-like and determined. “Well, do 
you think Johnnie or Billie Bushytail, the squir- 
rels, or Jimmie Wibblewobble, the duck, or 
perhaps Curly and Floppy Twistytail, the pig- 
gie boys, could have taken the flowers?” 

“No, indeed!” said Nurse Jane. “They 
wouldn’t do that. Some one seems to have been 
chewing the lovely rose petals, that are like 
117 


118 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


satin velvet, and also, many of the green leaves 
are eaten.” 

“Then I just know how did it!” cried Uncle 
Wiggily. “I know who has been eating your 
roses!” 

“Who?” asked Nurse Jane, all excited like. 

“The Skuddlemagoon, the Skeezicks or the 
Pipsisewah! Either one of those bad chaps!” 
said the bunny. 

“I think so, too,” said Baby Bunty, who 
hopped along just then, rolling her hoop. “Can 
you catch them, Uncle Wiggily?” 

“I’m going to try,” said the brave bunny 
gentleman. 

“Oh, please don’t!” begged Nurse Jane. “I 
don’t want you to run into danger. Uncle Wig- 
gily, and catching the Skeezicks, the Pipsisewah 
or the Skuddlemagoon would be very dangerous. 
The roses aren’t worth it.” 

“Oh, yes they are,” said Uncle Wiggily. 
“But I am not going to run into danger. The 
way I’ll catch whoever is eating your rose petals 
will be this. I’ll hide out here in the grass, and 
when I see the Skuddlemagoon, the Pipsisewah 
or the Skeezicks sneaking up to bite a flower. I’ll 
run out, sprinkle some salt on their tails and 
that will make them behave.” 

“Well, perhaps if you do it that way it will 


Jncle Wiggily and the Roses 119 


be all right/’ said Nurse Jane. “But do take 
care of yourself. Uncle Wiggily; won’t you?” 

“I will,” promised the bunny rabbit gentle- 
man. So he got the big salt cellar out of the 
kitchen, and then he hid himself in the tall grass 
near the rose bushes in Nurse Jane’s garden. 

“I’m going to hide with you, too, and watch,” 
said Bab; Bunty. “I can tell you when the 
Pipsisewj 1 is coming. Uncle Wiggily.” 

“Yes, ; u may hide with me,” said Mr. Long- 
ears. “^ ou are a lively little rabbit girl, and 
you will ],ot fall asleep yourself, nor let me.” 

“Indeer . I won’t,” promised Baby Bunty, and 
she kept tickling Uncle Wiggily with a piece 
bf ribbon grass on his pink, twinkling nose 
every time he looked as though he were going 
to doze off and fall asleep. 

Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty had not been 
hiding and watching very long before, all of a 
sudden, the little rabbit girl whispered: 

“Here comes the Skeezicks!” 

“Eh? The Skeezicks? So he does!” spoke 
the rabbit gentleman softly, and, looking over 
the top of the grass he saw the bad chap sneaking 
along. The Skeezicks picked off a rose and held 
it in his paw. 

“Now I’ll slip out and sprinkle salt on his 
tail!” said Uncle Wiggily. And he was just 
going to do this when Baby Bunty said: 


120 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


‘Uh, wait! Here comes the Skuddlema- 
goon!” 

And, surely enough, into the garden came also 
the bad Skuddlemagoon. 

“Two of ’em! This is going to be our busy 
day!” said Uncle Wiggily softly, as he looked 
to see if he had enough salt. “Well, I’ll tame 
’em both! They must learn to let Nurse Jane’s 
roses alone,” said he. 

Uncle Wiggily was just going to hop out and 
sprinkle salt on the tails of the Skeezicks and 
the Skuddlemagoon, when Baby Bunty caught 
him by the coat tails — she caught Uncle Wiggily, 
I mean — and pulled him back down in the tall 
grass. 

“Look out! Here comes the Pipsisewah!” 
cried the lively little rabbit girl, in a shrill 
whisper. 

Uncle Wiggily looked. Surely enough there 
was the old Pip, and just as the Skuddlemagoon 
and the Skeezicks had done, the Pipsisewah 
picked a rose. 

“Now we know who has been eating Nurse 
Jane’s flowers,” said Uncle Wiggily to Baby 
Bunty. “Well, here I go to sprinkle salt on 
all three of their tails, and then we’ll see what 
happens.” 

“Better wait,” said the little rabbit girl, and, 
as she said that the Pipsisewah exclaimed: 


Uncle Wiggily and the Roses 121 


“Now, gentlemen, I believe we are all ready. 
Take a smell of your roses and then well rush 
up to the bunaglow, grab Uncle Wiggily and 
take away all his souse.” 

“Right you are!” growled the Skuddlemagoon 
and the Skeezicks. All three of the bad chaps 
lifted the roses to their noses to smell the sweet 
posies, when, all of a sudden, a big, black pinch- 
ing beetle flew out of the rose the Skeezicks had 
and pinched him on the nose. And a big black 
beetle flew out of the rose the Skuddlemagoon 
held and pinched him on the nose. And then 
a big black beetle flew out of the rose the Pipsise- 
wah held and pinched him on the nose. 

“Wow! Wow! Wow!” cried the bad ani- 
mals. “This is too much!” 

And away they ran, not hurting Uncle Wig- 
gily at all, and they never took any more of 
Nurse Jane’s flowers. And because the beetles 
had been so brave they were given all the rose 
leaf honey they wanted. 

Now if the umbrella doesn’t run out in the 
rain, and get its rubbers all wet so it can’t slide 
down the ironing board. I’ll tell you next about 
Uncle Wiggily and the red tulip. 


STORY XXIV 


UNCLE WIGOILY AND THE RED TULIP 

Down in Xurse Jane’s garden, near the hollow 
stump bungalow, grew many flowers besides the 
roses, out of which flew the black beetles to nip 
the noses of the Skeezicks, the Skuddlemagoon 
and the Pipsisewah, as I have told you. 

Among the flowers were big tulips, white, 
golden and pink, and, best of all. Uncle Wiggily 
Longears, the rabbit gentleman, loved a tulip 
that was red. 

“It makes me think of so many things that 
are beautiful,” said Uncle Wiggily. “I could 
look at the red tulip all day long.” 

“Well, please don’t look at it all day just 
now, if you please!” begged Xurse Jane with a 
laugh. “Far be it from me. Uncle Wiggily, to 
hurt your feelings,” said she, “or to make you 
stop loving my flowers. But it is getting late 
afternoon now, and I have company coming for 
tea. There isn’t a bit of sugar in the bungalow, 
and unless you go to the seven and eight cent 
store and get me some — ^well, my little tea party 
will not be at all nice.” 

“Oh, excuse me! I’ll go get the sugar at 
122 


Uncle Wiggily and the Red Tulip 128 


once,” said Uncle Wiggily. Then, putting on 
his tall, silk hat, and taking his red, white and 
blue striped rheumatism crutch off the garden 
gate, Uncle Wiggily started to hop to the nine 
and ten cent store for some sugar. 

“But I must take just one more look at the 
red tulip,” said Uncle Wiggily. “I want to 
remember how beautiful it was as I hop along 
to the store.” 

So he went into the garden again, and stood 
looking at the red flower, the petals of which 
were spread wide open to let the sun warm the 
heart of the blossom. 

Then Uncle Wiggily noticed that some weeds 
were growing up too near the red tulip, so he 
dug them out with the end of his red crutch. 

“Weeds are not good for flowers,” said Uncle 
Wiggily. 

Just then Baby Bunty called to him from the 
back kitchen window: 

“Uncle Wiggily, if you don’t stop fussing 
over that tulip, and hurry on to the store, it will 
be closed — I mean the store will be closed. It’s 
getting late.” 

“Yes, and the tulip will be closed also,” said 
Uncle Wiggily. “Tulip flowers close when 
evening comes and open in the morning. But 
I’ll hurry. Baby Bunty.” 

Giving one last look at his favorite flower. 


124 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


Uncle Wiggily hopped on to the ten and eleven 
cent store. The afternoon was rapidly turning 
into evening, and the bunny rabbit gentleman 
hurried as fast as he could. But, just as Baby 
Bunty had said, he had spent too much time 
over the red tulip. The store was closed and 
Uncle Wiggily could get no sugar. 

“This is too bad!” he exclaimed. “What am 
I going to do for sugar for Nurse Jane’s tea! 
She’ll be so disappointed. I’ll go see if I can 
find another store that isn’t closed, as my red 
tulip must be closed now.” 

So Uncle Wiggily hopped on through the 
woods, but no other store could he find. And it 
was getting later and later, and he knew it must 
be almost time for Nurse Jane’s company to 
arrive and have tea. 

“Well, there is no help for it,” said the rabbit 
gentleman, sort of ashamed like and perfunctory. 
“I’ll just have to tell Nurse Jane I reached the 
store too late. She’ll have to use molasses to 
sweeten the tea. And yet that will not be at 
all nice.” 

Still there was nothing else to be done. If 
it had been spring he could have gotten some 
sweet maple sugar sap from a tree, but the sap 
had stopped running. 

“I guess molasses is what she’ll have to use,” 
said the bunny, as he hopped around the back 


Uncle Wiggily and the Red Tulip 125 


way into his hollow stump bungalow. “I’ll take 
one last look at my red tulip,” he said. He 
wanted to put off, as long as possible, telling 
Nurse J ane the bad news. 

Uncle Wiggily reached the garden. His red 
tulip had closed up its petals. Just as he had 
expected, until the blossom looked more like a 
bud than a full flower. And, as Uncle Wiggily 
looked at the red tulip he heard, coming from 
it, a voice which said: 

“Let me out! Oh, please, let me out!” 

“Who are you and where are you?” asked the 
rabbit gentleman in surprise. 

“I am a buzzing bee and I am inside the red 
tulip,” was the answer. “I was getting a bit of 
yellow polen on my legs, to help make wax, 
when the tulip flower suddenly closed its petals 
and I’m caught.” 

“Yes, that is just what happened,” said the 
red tulip. “I’m sorry, but it couldn’t be helped. 
I’d open my petals and let you out, my dear bee, 
but I can not, I can not open my petals until 
morning.” 

“Ah, but I can open them and I will, and I’ll 
let the bee out,” said Uncle Wiggily. “But I’ll 
do so very gently, my dear red tulip. I will not 
hurt you.” 

Very carefully Uncle Wiggily opened the red 
tulip and out flew the buzzing bee. 


126 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


“Thank you, Uncle Wiggily,” it said. And 
then it went on: “But why do you look so sad 
and worried?” 

“Because I forget Nurse Jane’s sugar, or, 
rather, I got to the store too late,” was the 
answer. 

“Oh, I can easily fix that,” said the bee. 
“Since you were so kind as to let me out of the 
red tulip. I’ll call a lot of my friends and we’ll 
bring sweet honey for Nurse Jane’s tea.” And 
the bees did, and so everything was all right, and 
Nurse Jane said the honey was better than sugar. 

And, if the clothes pin doesn’t try to climb 
out of the thread box when it’s hiding away from 
the cake of soap as they play tag, you shall next 
hear about Uncle Wiggily and Bunty’s slippers. 


STORY XXV 


TJNCLE WIGGILY AND BUNTY’s SLIPPERS 

‘‘Well, I think she is all ready now, except her 
slippers,” said Nurse Jane Fuzzy Wuzzy. 

“^Vho is ready?” asked Uncle Wiggily Long- 
ears, the bunny rabbit gentleman, as he hopped 
up the steps of his hollow stump bungalow, in 
time to hear his muskrat lady housekeeper ring 
the dinner bell. 

“Baby Bunty,” answered Nurse Jane. “She 
is all ready except her slippers, and I thought 
you’d get them for her.” 

“Well, I’ll do almost anything for Baby Bunty 
except chase her, or play tag, on the days when 
I’m too lame and stiff,” said Uncle Wiggily, as 
he sat down on the softest side of the porch, for 
his rheumatism hurt him a little just then. “But 
what’s all this about her slippers, and what is 
Baby Bunty getting ready for?” he asked. 

“Oh, a little party that Alice Wibblewohhle, 
the duck girl, is going to give,” spoke Nurse 
Jane. “I have made Baby Bunty a new dress 
for it, and she has a new sky-blue-pink hair rib- 
bon, so she is all ready except her slippers. Will 
127 


128 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


you go to the five and six cent store and get 
them?” 

“Of course I will!” said Uncle Wiggily with a 
jolly laugh that made his nose twinkle like a piece 
of cherry pie going to a moving picture show. 
“I’ll hop right along,” said the bunny rabbit 
gentleman, “and get Baby Bunty’s slippers. 
Don’t let her go to the party until I get back.” 

“Oh, she can’t go without her slippers,” spoke 
Nurse Jane. “I’m going in now and curl her 
fur.” 

So while the muskrat lady did this Uncle Wig- 
gily hopped over the fields and through the woods 
to the seven and eight cent store to get Baby 
Bunty’s party slippers. 

Now the rabbit gentleman had not gone very 
far over hill and dale than, all at once, he saw a 
nice hoptoad lady limping along the woodland 
path, trying to carry a loaf of dandelion bread. 
But she was going very slowly, was the hoptoad 
lady, and, every now and then, she would drop 
the loaf of bread. 

“Why, my dear Mrs. Toad, what’s the mat- 
ter?” kindly asked Uncle Wiggily as he caught 
up to her. “Have you met with an accident?” 

“I should say so,” was the answer. “An auto- 
mobile ran over my toes, and I can hardly walk; 
much less carry the loaf of dandelion bread.” 

“Then allow me to carry it for you,” said Uncle 


Uncle Wiggily and Bimty’s Slippers 129 


Wiggily. And he did, and he helped the hop- 
toad lady limp to her home rnider an old log. 

“I know what it is to be lame and hardly able 
to walk,” spoke Mr. Longears, as the toad lady 
thanked him. “I am only too glad that I could 
help you,” said he. 

Then he hopped on a little farther and he met 
a bumble bee caught fast in the sticky gum of a 
pine tree. With his red, white and blue striped 
rheumatism crutch. Uncle Wiggily helped the 
bee get its legs free, and away it flew. 

“If I can ever help you I will, dear Uncle Wig- 
gily,” buzzed the bee. 

Then the bunny uncle hopped on and on, and 
pretty soon he came to the store where Nurse 
Jane had told him to get Baby Bunty’s slippers. 

But alas ! When he reached the place the store 
was closed, for it was much later in the afternoon 
than Uncle Wiggily had thought. It was so 
light, and with the clocks being set an hour ahead, 
you know, that he thought he had plenty of time. 
But the store was locked for the night. 

“Well, if I can’t get Baby Bunty’s slippers 
here I’ll have to go to a drug store or somewhere 
else,” thought the bunny rabbit. “Drug stores 
keep open late.” 

But the drug stores did not sell party slippers 
for little rabbit girls, and, though he tried in 
many other places, and even in a moving picture 


130 Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty 


show. Uncle Wiggily could buy no slippers for 
Baby Bunty. 

‘‘Oh, dear! What shall I do?” thought Mr. 
Longears. “Baby Bunty will be so disappointed! 
She can’t go to the party without slippers ! Oh, 
dear! What shall I do?” 

“Ha! Perhaps I can help you. Uncle Wig- 
gily,” said a buzzing voice. “I am the bumble 
bee to whom you were so kind. I know where 
there are a lot of lady slippers, and ” 

“Oh, but Baby Bunty is too small to wear a 
lady’s slipper,” said the rabbit. “But where are 
those of which you speak?” 

“Right over here,” buzzed the bee, and he flew 
over to where there was a large bed of the flowers 
called “Lady’s Slippers.” He perched upon a 
pink blossom and said: “Here are some very 
small flowers. Uncle Wiggily, I’m sure they 
would do for Baby Bunty.” 

“And if they are too large I can make them 
smaller,” said another voice. “I am the toad 
lady whom you helped,” the voice went on, “and 
I can take a tuck in the flower slippers with some 
toad-flax, sewing them up, and making them just 
fit Baby Bunty.” 

“Oh, I wish you would,” said Uncle Wiggily. 

So he picked two of the smallest lady slipper 
flowers which the bee pointed out, the toad lady 
made them smaller, and Baby Bunty wore them 


Uncle Wiggily and Bunty’s Slippers 131 


to Alice Wibblewobble’s party. And all the ani- 
mal girls said: 

“Oh, aren’t Baby Bunty’s slippers cute I” 

So everything came out all right. 



1 





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